World Inflammatory Bowel Disease Day 2023

That this House welcomes World Inflammatory Bowel Disease Day on 19 May; understands that there are over 500,000 people in the UK living with Inflammatory Bowel Disease, the two main forms of which are Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis; appreciates the work of Crohn’s & Colitis UK’s Early Diagnosis campaign, which puts a focus on the importance of early diagnosis of Crohn’s and Colitis; notes with concern that more than a quarter of people wait longer than one year for a diagnosis and that many people have to visit A&E departments for emergency treatment; further understands that delays in diagnosis can impact hugely on quality of life, disrupting education and work; regrets that patients who wait?longest to be diagnosed with Crohn’s or Colitis are two to four times more likely to have complex disease that requires surgery; understands that reducing delays to diagnosis will improve the quality of life of patients, while reducing the wider costs to the NHS; and urges the Government to invest in a public campaign to raise awareness of digestive and bowel disease to improve diagnosis over the next five years.