Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reported increase in diagnosed cases of skin cancer and their possible relationship to cheap package flight holidays; what was the cost to the NHS of treating patients with skin cancer in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and what plans they have, if any, for an educational campaign to inform travellers on the correct use of sun screening products.

Public Health England (PHE) has not carried out an assessment of the possible relationship between cheap package flight holidays and diagnosed cases of skin cancer.

NHS England and NHS Improvement are unable to break down funding levels for individual cancer types.

PHE has provided advice for adults and children on sunscreen and sun safety in the United Kingdom and abroad. Advice states that people should not rely on sunscreen alone to protect themselves from the sun. People should wear suitable clothing and spend time in the shade when the sun is at its hottest. When buying sunscreen, the label should have: a sun protection factor of at least 30 to protect against UVB at least 4-star UVA protection.

The use of sunscreen is just one of the protection measures that travellers should consider when visiting sunny areas. PHE encourages travellers to make use of the ultraviolet index information from its measurement sites.