Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of infection diagnostics on (a) levels of inappropriate antibiotic use and (b) the policies set out in the policy paper entitled UK 5-year action plan for antimicrobial resistance 2024 to 2029, published on 8 May 2024.

The United Kingdom’s 2024 to 2029 antimicrobial resistance (AMR) national action plan (NAP), published in May 2024, highlights the importance of accurate diagnostic testing to guide effective antibiotic use and tackle AMR. A core commitment of the NAP is supporting clinicians to prescribe the right antimicrobials only to those that need them. Outcome four specifically relates to strengthening antimicrobial and diagnostic stewardship by improved targeting of antimicrobials and diagnostic tools.

The Government is also working to deliver outcome six of the NAP, which commits to cross-sector working to develop diagnostics as a tool to tackle AMR. The Department, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), has invested over £18 million of funding into AMR diagnostics research. The Department also funds the NIHR’s HealthTech Research Centres, which accelerate development of healthcare technologies, including diagnostics.

NHS England’s AMR Diagnostic programme is taking a multifactorial approach to improving the roll out of innovative rapid diagnostics, aligning to the 2024 to 2029 AMR NAP’s commitments. The programme aims to improve current practice, enhance the evidence base, improve engagement and training, and overcome barriers for industry to support the development of diagnostic tests. The ambition is to drive innovation in diagnostics within the system to improve antimicrobial stewardship and reduce the burden of infection and AMR. As part of this programme, NHS England is undertaking Horizon Scanning for new innovations, supporting research into point-of-care tests for key infections, and continuing to work with industry.