Extra government funding has been allocated to the delivery of modernised cancer services.

Speaking at the Britain Against Cancer conference on Wednesday, public health minister Melanie Johnson confirmed that a more accurate liquid based cytology technique of cervical screening would be introduced in the NHS.

The move has been recommended by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence.

The Department of Health will allocate £7.2 million over the next two years to train staff in the new method.

"At the moment up to 300,000 women a year have to have their smear test redone because it cannot be read properly. This of course causes real anxiety and uncertainty," said Johnson.

"This new technique will reduce the numbers of women who have to have their smear test repeated from one in 10 to one in 100.

"We are using this opportunity to modernise the entire cervical screening programme and standardise the service around the country."

In addition, the minister announced the creation of three national and seven regional endoscopy training centres to teach staff the methods for diagnosing bowel cancer.

"We are committed to introducing a national bowel cancer screening programme, which we know will save lives. But we are all aware in practice this is a huge undertaking," she said.

"These new training centres will not only train hospital medical staff but also GPs, nurses and other health professionals.

"Patients will find that the services are more convenient and waiting times are reduced as a result of increasing the number of staff who are trained to carry out this procedure."

However, shadow health minister John Baron said that while attempts to improve services were welcome, there would be no significant improvements "without fundamental reform to the NHS".

"Labour's imposition of relentless bureaucracy, paperwork and day-to-day meddling within the NHS has ensured that money pumped into the NHS is not reaching the front line," he said.

"The government's corrosive target culture, in particular its two week waiting time target for cancer treatment, has distorted clinical priorities.

"Doctors are forced to treat patients according to politically imposed priorities, rather than on the basis of clinical need. As a result average waiting times are rising and the sickest are not being treated first.

"British patients deserve real solutions to their healthcare needs. Let's hope these latest announcements are not yet more eye catching headlines and stunts from a government obsessed with spin."