Written questions by Jogee.

What steps he has taken ensure the continued availability of post office services in rural communities in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency and (b) Staffordshire since his appointment.

The Government protects the sustainability of the Post Office network - and the rural network in particular - by providing an annual Network Subsidy. This ensures Post Office Limited maintains a minimum number of branches and a geographical spread of branches in line with the Government-set access criteria.This financial year we are providing £83 million in subsidy, up from £50 million previously, and building on the uplift provided last year. The access criteria ensures that, however the network changes, 99% of the UK population live within three miles of their nearest Post Office.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with the British Pest Control Association on its document entitled A manifesto for public health pest management, published in June 2024.

No Minister at Defra has held discussions with the British Pest Control Association on its document entitled ‘A manifesto for public health pest management’, published in June 2024.

Communities and Local Government, what engagement he has had with the Building Safety Regulator since his appointment.

The new Minister for Building Safety, Fire and Democracy recently met with the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) leadership, in recognition of the critical role the regulator plays in ensuring the safe design and construction of high-rise buildings. We understand delays to the assessment of applications are unacceptable, which is why we announced reforms to the BSR on 30 June, including plans to carve out the BSR from the Health and Safety Executive and establish a standalone body with a clear focus on building safety. In recognition of the performance challenges, and in line with announcement in June, the BSR has already started to make operational and policy changes to speed up decision making particularly on building control approval, including through the introduction of an Innovation Unit. We are seeing early signs of improvement, with all applications in the Innovation Unit so far on track to exceed or meet the 12-week SLA as they progress through the application process.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the work of the British Council on her Department's priorities.

The British Council plays a leading role in promoting UK values and interests through its work in arts and culture, education, and promotion of the English language.The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) works with the British Council to ensure strategic alignment between British Council activity and FCDO priorities.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when she plans to appoint a new Ambassador to the United States.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 22 September to Question 76609.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the (a) effectiveness and (b) adequacy of the Building Safety Regulator.

The new Minister for Building Safety, Fire and Democracy recently met with the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) leadership, in recognition of the critical role the regulator plays in ensuring the safe design and construction of high-rise buildings. We understand delays to the assessment of applications are unacceptable, which is why we announced reforms to the BSR on 30 June, including plans to carve out the BSR from the Health and Safety Executive and establish a standalone body with a clear focus on building safety. In recognition of the performance challenges, and in line with announcement in June, the BSR has already started to make operational and policy changes to speed up decision making particularly on building control approval, including through the introduction of an Innovation Unit. We are seeing early signs of improvement, with all applications in the Innovation Unit so far on track to exceed or meet the 12-week SLA as they progress through the application process.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many ministerial visits have taken place to sub-Saharan Southern Africa in each year since 2019.

The Foreign Secretary met a number of her overseas counterparts on her visit to the United Nations General Assembly, including at the meeting of the Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministers on 22 September, and will have further such engagement over the coming weeks and months.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the political situation in Japan.

The UK Government does not comment on the internal affairs of foreign governments.

Media and Sport, when she expects to launch the UK Town of Culture competition.

The UK Town of Culture competition will help to boost pride in place by shining a spotlight on multiple towns and giving them a platform to share their story, building on the success of the UK City of Culture competition. Further details on the UK Town of Culture competition will be announced in due course.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on the work of the Association of Commonwealth Universities.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) are a partner organisation to the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU). The ACU provides secretariat services to the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK (CSC) - an executive Non-Departmental Public Body (NPDB) - which administers Commonwealth Scholarships funded by the FCDO. The FCDO is the CSC's sponsor department.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has had engagement with the African Union since 5 September 2025.

This Government is committed to building a strong relationship with African countries and institutions, including the African Union (AU) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Many of the goals of the African Union and the United Kingdom are mutually supportive, for example in our joint backing of the AU-led peace support operations in Somalia. Since taking up office in September, the Foreign Secretary has met the Foreign Minister of South Africa - a leading member of the Southern African Development Community.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has had engagement with the Southern African Development Community since 5 September 2025.

This Government is committed to building a strong relationship with African countries and institutions, including the African Union (AU) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Many of the goals of the African Union and the United Kingdom are mutually supportive, for example in our joint backing of the AU-led peace support operations in Somalia. Since taking up office in September, the Foreign Secretary has met the Foreign Minister of South Africa - a leading member of the Southern African Development Community.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the African Union’s Agenda 2063.

This Government is committed to building a strong relationship with African countries and institutions, including the African Union (AU) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Many of the goals of the African Union and the United Kingdom are mutually supportive, for example in our joint backing of the AU-led peace support operations in Somalia. Since taking up office in September, the Foreign Secretary has met the Foreign Minister of South Africa - a leading member of the Southern African Development Community.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has met the Secretary General of the Commonwealth since 5 September 2025.

The Foreign Secretary met a number of her overseas counterparts on her visit to the United Nations General Assembly, including at the meeting of the Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministers on 22 September, and will have further such engagement over the coming weeks and months.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has had engagement with the Caribbean Community since 5 September 2025.

The Foreign Secretary met a number of her overseas counterparts on her visit to the United Nations General Assembly, including at the meeting of the Commonwealth Foreign Affairs Ministers on 22 September, and will have further such engagement over the coming weeks and months.

What steps she is taking to enhance the (a) security and (b) safety of worshippers at places of worship in (i) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency and (ii) Staffordshire.

This Government is absolutely committed to protecting the right of individuals to freely practise their religion at their chosen place of worship, and to making our streets and communities safer, including providing funding through the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant, the Protective Security for Mosques scheme and the Places of Worship Protective Security Scheme.

Food and Rural Affairs, what engagement she has had with the Tenant Farmers Association since her appointment.

Ministers have engaged with the Tenants Farmers Association (TFA) and regularly engage with many farming stakeholders. The Government is committed to ensuring agricultural tenancies are fair and collaborative and will work with the TFA to achieve this.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of palliative care services for people in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency and (b) Staffordshire since Rt hon. and hon. Members last considered the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill.

Irrespective of whether the law changes on assisted dying, we must continue to work towards creating a society where every person who needs it receives high-quality, compassionate palliative care and end of life care.Palliative care services are included in the list of services an integrated care board (ICB), including Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent ICB, must commission. This promotes a more consistent national approach and supports commissioners in prioritising palliative care and end of life care. To support ICBs in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and service specifications.We are committed to shifting more healthcare into the community so that patients and their families receive high-quality, personalised care in the most appropriate setting, and palliative care and end of life care services will have a big role to play in that shift.The Government and the National Health Service will closely monitor the shift towards strategic commissioning of palliative and end of life care services to ensure that services reduce variation in access and quality, although some variation may be appropriate to reflect both innovation and the needs of local populations.

What plans his Department has to develop a neurology-specific implementation plan to support the 10 year Health Plan for England.

NHS England has established a Neurology Transformation Programme, a multi-year, clinically led programme, which has developed a new model of integrated care to support integrated care boards (ICBs) to deliver the right service, at the right time for all neurology patients. This programme is underway now and is due to conclude in March 2026.The Neurology Transformation Programme focuses on providing access equitably across the country, care as close to home as possible, and early intervention to prevent illness and deterioration in patients with long-term neurological conditions. A toolkit is being developed to support ICBs to understand and implement this new model, which will include components on delivering acute neurology services, improving health equity in neurology, and improving community neurology services.NHS England Specialised Commissioning published a revised National Neurology Service Specification in August 2025, which provides a detailed description of how patients can access specialised neurology care equitably wherever they are in England, particularly for specialised services that are not available in every part of the country.There are currently no plans to develop a neurology-specific implementation plan to support the 10-Year Health Plan, although potential conditions and topics for the new modern service frameworks will be kept under review following the development of the first tranche of three referenced in the 10-Year Health Plan.

How many hospitals have staff who are members of the Parkinson’s UK Excellence Network.

No estimate has been made of the number of people with Parkinson's disease who have access to a Parkinson’s nurse in Newcastle-under-Lyme and Staffordshire. The Department does not hold data on how many hospitals have staff who are members of the Parkinson’s UK Excellence Network.It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) and local authorities to meet the care and support needs of people diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Patients living in the Surrey Heath constituency would be covered by either the NHS Frimley ICB or the NHS Surrey Heartlands ICB. ICBs are responsible for commissioning services to meet the healthcare needs of their local populations and, in doing so, we expect them to have regard to best practice guidance, such as that published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.This Government is committed to publishing a 10 Year Workforce Plan which will ensure the National Health Service has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients, when they need it.The new NHS App will end the 8am rush by providing more flexibility in the way that people contact their general practitioner (GP), enabling better GP appointment booking as long as GPs make appointments available in the App. It will also help people to get care quicker without seeing their GP, for example improved self-care by going to a pharmacy or by self-referring into a specialist pathway or by providing remote consultations with specialists.