Written questions by Anderson.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the affordability of firearms licences and renewals for (a) game keepers and (b) veterinarians.

On 5 February 2025, increased fees came into effect for firearms licensing applications processed by police forces. This gave effect to a commitment in the Government’s manifesto. A full impact assessment was published alongside the Firearms (Variation of Fees) Order 2025, the Statutory Instrument that brought the new fees into effect. The impact assessment covers the impact of increased fees on game keepers and veterinarians. Any future changes to firearms licensing will be subject to further impact assessments in the normal way.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if the Government will put the role of Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief on a statutory footing.

The UK is committed to championing freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all around the world. However, we do not see additional value in making the role of envoy statutory. No special envoy roles in the UK are enshrined in legislation and legislation is not required in order to create, or make more effective, the role of special envoys. David Smith MP was appointed as the UK Special Envoy for FoRB in December 2024.

If she will take steps to deliver at least one Family Hub in every local authority area.

The government’s Plan for Change sets out a commitment to give children the best start in life, measured by a record 75% of children starting school ready to learn, measured by the number hitting the early learning goals at the end of reception.Delivering this will require strengthening and joining up family services to improve support through pregnancy and early childhood. This includes continuing to invest in and build up Family Hubs and Start for Life programmes.75 local authorities with some of the highest levels of deprivation have received funding and there are now more than 400 Family Hubs open across the 75 local authorities. The department is investing a further £126 million in 2025/26 to give every child the best start in life and deliver on the Plan for Change. Future funding decisions are subject to the multi-year spending review.The evidence and learning from this investment will help to improve services across England where they are most needed and those local authorities not receiving funding will be able to access expert advice, guidance and resources from the National Centre for Family Hubs.

Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to focus public sector procurement on locally produced food.

The new national procurement policy statement sets out requirements for Government contracts, favouring high-quality products that we believe British producers are well-placed to supply, aiding our ambition for half of food supplied into public sector catering to be from local producers or those certified to higher environmental standards.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of training pathways to GP registration in (a) rural areas and (b) general.

The Targeted Enhanced Recruitment Scheme was an initiative that formerly offered a one-off payment of £20,000 to General Practice Specialty Trainees committed to working in a select number of training locations in England that either had a history of under-recruitment or were in under-doctored or deprived areas. It is, however, no longer needed as currently all general practice training places are oversubscribed and, therefore, filled. We will keep the distribution of the workforce, particularly in rural areas, under review.On 18 February 2025, the Chief Medical Officer and the National Medical Director of NHS England jointly launched a review of postgraduate medical training. The review will cover placement options, the flexibility of training, difficulties with rotas, control and autonomy in training, and the balance between developing specialist knowledge and gaining a broad range of skills. The review will be based on feedback from current resident doctors and students, and locally employed doctors and medical educators, with a series of engagement events around the country starting from this March.

What steps he is taking to ensure that medical students remain in the (a) UK and (b) medical profession after graduation.

We are committed to listening to the concerns of resident doctors, and to enhancing and improving their working lives.We are undertaking a range of work to tackle the issues that resident doctors are facing, including improving working conditions and reforming the current system of rotations and placements, working in partnership with the British Medical Association and other partners, as agreed as part of the pay deal last year.NHS England’s Enhancing Resident Doctors Working Lives programme continues to implement a number of measures to support resident doctors, encouraging them to stay in training and the National Health Service. This includes measures such as less than full time training options, to allow trainees to continue to work in the service and progress with their training on a reduced working pattern, where this benefits their personal circumstances.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the numbers of GPs in South Shropshire.

In January 2025, there were 57.8 full time equivalent doctors in general practice (GP) working in the South Shropshire constituency.The Government is recruiting over 1,000 recently qualified GPs through an £82 million boost to the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) over 2024/25, as part of an initiative to address GP unemployment and secure the future pipeline of GPs. Newly qualified GPs employed under the ARRS will continue to receive support under the scheme in the coming year as part of the 2025/26 contract.We have committed to training thousands more GPs across the country which will increase capacity and take the pressure off those currently working in the system.

Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to help public libraries expand outreach work.

Public libraries are funded by local authorities. Each local authority is responsible for assessing the needs of their local communities and designing a delivery model to meet those requirements within available resources. This could include a mobile and or a home library service, as well as other outreach services.The government is committed to getting local government back on its feet. The final Local Government Finance Settlement for 2025-26 makes available over £69 billion for local government, which is a 6.8% cash terms increase on 2024-25.The Libraries Improvement Fund (LIF) has enabled library services across England to invest in a range of projects to upgrade buildings and technology so they are better placed to respond to the changing ways people are using them. £20.5 million across three rounds has already supported 95 projects which includes investment in outreach services, such as electric tuk-tuks in Portsmouth. On 20 February the Secretary of State announced a further £5.5 million round 4 of LIF for 2025/26.

What steps she is taking to help promote reading for fun in schools.

I refer the hon. Member for South Shropshire to the answer of 11 March 2025 to Question 35717.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of bank closures on access to (a) cash and (b) in-person banking services.

Banking has changed significantly in recent years with many customers benefiting from the ease and convenience of remote banking. While branch closures are commercial decisions for banks, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) guidance expects firms to carefully consider the impact of planned branch closures on their customers’ everyday banking and cash access needs and put in place alternatives where reasonable. This seeks to ensure that branch closures are implemented in a way that treats customers fairly. The Government understands the importance of face-to-face banking to communities and high streets and is committed to championing sufficient access for all as a priority. This is why the Government is working closely with industry to roll out 350 banking hubs across the UK. The UK banking sector has committed to deliver these hubs by the end of this Parliament. Over 200 hubs have been announced so far, and over 100 are already open. The FCA introduced regulatory rules for access to cash in September 2024. Its rules require the reasonable provision of free cash withdrawal and deposit facilities for personal current accounts. Where a branch closure is announced or a community has submitted a cash access assessment request, LINK (the operator of the UK’s largest ATM network) assesses a community’s access to cash withdrawal and deposit needs, and can recommend a new service if necessary. Where a resident, community organisation or other interested party feels access to cash in their community is insufficient, they can submit a request for a cash access assessment. Further information about submitting a cash access request can be found on LINK’s website. Alternative options to access everyday banking services can be via telephone banking, through digital means such as mobile or online banking and via the Post Office. The Post Office Banking Framework allows personal and business customers to withdraw and deposit cash, check their balance, pay bills and cash cheques at 11,500 Post Office branches across the UK.

What steps her Department is taking to improve transport infrastructure within rural communities.

The government is committed to delivering the better, more reliable bus services that passengers deserve. In the Budget, the government confirmed investment of over £1 billion to support and improve bus services and keep fares affordable in England outside London, including in rural areas. Shropshire Council has been allocated over £4.4 million for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services. Local authorities can use this funding to improve bus infrastructure and make services more frequent for local communities. We have also committed to reforming bus funding to give local leaders more control and flexibility to allow them to plan ahead to deliver their local transport priorities. Shropshire Council will also receive a share of the £650 million-plus funding for local transport announced in the Budget. This funding aims to support everyday journeys and improve transport connections in our towns, villages, and rural areas.

Whether she plans to allocate funding to support (a) sustainability and (b) innovation in the arts, tourism and leisure sector.

The Government has included the Creative Industries as one of the priority sectors in the Industrial Strategy, and as part of this is considering opportunities to support sustainability and innovation in the arts. At Phase 1 of the Spending Review the Government allocated funding to support the arts and cultural sector, including a £270 million Arts Everywhere Fund that will help to improve the financial and environmental sustainability of arts venues and a £60 million package for the Creative Industries announced at the Creative Industries Growth Moment in January that will help creative business to grow and facilitate innovation. The Government also supports the tourism industry primarily through funding for the British Tourist Authority to support VisitBritain and VisitEngland. Any new funding plans will be considered as part of Phase 2 of the Spending Review in June.

What steps he is taking to improve mental health support for residents in rural areas.

People with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they need, which is why we will fix the broken system to ensure we give mental health the same attention and focus as physical health and that people can be confident of accessing high quality mental health support when they need it.Nationally, we plan to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers across children and adult mental health services in England to reduce delays and provide faster treatment. We will also introduce access to a specialist mental health professional in every school and roll out “Young Futures hubs” in every community.In addition, people of all ages who are in crisis or who are concerned about a family or loved one can now call 111, select the mental health option, and speak to a trained mental health professional. National Health Service staff can guide callers with next steps such as organising face-to-face community support or facilitating access to alternative services, like crisis cafés or safe havens, which provide a place for people to stay as an alternative to accident and emergency or a hospital admission. It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICB) to commission care to meet the needs of their local population.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to support (a) prevention and (b) recovery efforts by local flood action groups.

The Government’s new Flood Resilience Taskforce brings together representatives from national, regional and local government, the emergency services, and the third sector to improve co-ordination between organisations working on floods resilience so they can put in the support that the public needs and bolsters the nation’s floods resilience. The National Flood Forum, who support many local flood action groups, are a key member of our Flood Resilience Taskforce. I recently met with the Chair and CEO of the National Flood Forum. We explored how their work to establish and support local flood action groups can be further promoted via the Taskforce.

Communities and Local Government, how much funding her Department has provided to help support the operation of mayoral combined authorities in each of the last five years.

Details of funding provided to Mayoral Combined Authorities is published each year in annual devolution reports and can be accessed on gov.uk.

If he will take steps to help protect Post Office services in rural areas.

We recognise the key role Post Offices play in their communities, and branches in some rural areas are particularly important as the Post Office often acts as a community hub. We are listening carefully to stakeholders to ensure the whole network, including these important rural branches, is sustainable.The Government-set Access Criteria ensures that however the network changes, services remain within local reach of all citizens. Government’s minimum access criteria for Post Offices mean that 99% of the UK population must be within three miles of their nearest post office outlet and 90% must be within one mile of their nearest post office outlet.

Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to promote the availability of funding for small charities.

This government recognises the vital role that charities play in providing crucial support to different groups and communities. This Government is committed to resetting the relationship with civil society and treating them as an equal, expert partner who are integral to the delivery of the Government’s vision for national renewal.DCMS is promoting the availability of funding for smaller charities in several ways. This includes delivery of a number of grant schemes, such as the Know Your Neighbourhood Fund and the £25.5m Voluntary, Community, and Social Enterprise (VCSE) Energy Efficiency Scheme, which is supporting frontline organisations across England to improve their energy efficiency and sustainability.Support for charities is also available through social investment which provides access to grants, repayable finance and a blend of the two. This government is continuing to look at how dormant assets can be used to support the availability of finance to facilitate VCSEs becoming more entrepreneurial and financially resilient. An estimated £350 million will flow into the Dormant Assets Scheme between 2024-28, with details on how this money will be distributed to be provided in due course.

Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to help increase mobile phone coverage.

The government wants all areas of the UK to benefit from reliable and good quality mobile coverage.4G geographic coverage from at least one mobile operator has now reached over 95% of the UK landmass through the Shared Rural Network. The programme is continuing to deliver 4G mobile connectivity to places where there is either limited or no coverage.Our ambition is for all populated areas having higher-quality standalone 5G by 2030, and we are committed to ensuring we have the right policy and regulatory framework to support investment and competition. As part of this work, the government intends to reform the planning system to make it easier to build digital infrastructure. We have also increased funding for our 5G Innovation Region programme to £43 million to drive adoption of standalone 5G across key sectors.We will continue working with Ofcom to ensure that their coverage reporting is more accurate.

What steps she is taking to support unpaid carers in rural areas.

Local authorities are best placed to understand and plan for the needs of their population, which is why, under the Care Act 2014, they are tasked with the duty to shape their care market to meet the diverse needs of all local people.The Government is committed to giving families the support that they need. I recently met with the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Employment Rights, Competition and Markets in the Department for Business and Trade, and the Minister of State for Social Security and Disability in the Department for Work and Pensions to look at how we can work together more closely to support unpaid carers.The Government has already taken steps to support unpaid carers. From April 2025 we are increasing the Carer's Allowance weekly earnings limit from £151 a week to £196. This means carers can earn up to £10,000 a year whilst still retaining Carer's Allowance; this is approximately an additional £2,000 a year.The Accelerating Reform Fund’s (ARF) second tranche of funding worth £22.6 million for 2024/25 has also been released. More than half of the ARF projects, and at least one in each integrated care system area are focussed on identifying, recognising and supporting unpaid carers.The Government recognises the challenges facing the adult social care system. That is why we are launching an independent commission into adult social care as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a National Care Service.The Commission will start a national conversation about what working age adults, older people, and their families expect from adult social care, including exploring the needs of unpaid carers who provide vital care and support.

Communities and Local Government, if she will take steps to support park home residents with the cost of utilities.

Park home residents on low incomes are eligible for support with their household bills. The government has extended the Household Support Fund in England until 31 March 2026 with an extra £742 million in support, with additional funding for the Devolved Governments.Park home residents are also eligible for a one-off £150 discount off electricity bills under the Warm Home Discount scheme. The payment is in addition to other payments such as the Cold Weather Payment and Winter Fuel Payment.Any park home resident who is struggling with their energy bills contracts can contact their local authority to see what support they can receive.The government’s mission to deliver clean power by 2030 is the best way to break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect billpayers permanently, including park home residents. This, combined with our Warm Homes Plan to upgrade millions of homes to make them warmer and cheaper to run, is how we will drive down energy bills and make cold homes a thing of the past.