Adam Jogee

Many churches across the Diocese of Lichfield are involved in initiatives to help those in poverty, including offering Warm Welcome Spaces, foodbanks, and school uniform banks. Such initiatives are developed according to locally identified needs and available resources in parishes.

St Thomas’ Church in Kidsgrove, St Luke’s Church in Clayton, and All Saints Church in Madeley are three of the six local distribution points for the Newcastle-Staffs Foodbank. These churches work with other denominations in Chesterton, Silverdale and Newcastle town centre to provide this service to the local community in Newcastle under Lyme. On the 22nd May, the Foodbank published data to show that in one year, it had provided 8,720 emergency food parcels to people in need. 3,018 of these parcels went to children across Newcastle under Lyme. More information is available here: https://newcastlestaffs.foodbank.org.uk/2025/05/22/end-of-year-stats-2/

The Diocese of Lichfield Strengthening Communities team works with communities and individuals, churches and other faiths across Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent, the Black Country and north Shropshire, to support community building and improve lives. More information about the work of the diocese can be found here: https://www.lichfield.anglican.org/about-us/strengthening-communities/ For further information do please contact the Bishop of Lichfield, the Rt Revd Michael Ipgrave, or the Archdeacon of Stoke, the Venerable Megan Smith. Contact details are available on the Diocese of Lichfield website.

Nationally, the Church of England has committed to three priorities: to develop and grow more disciples, to develop a mixed ecology of churches and to grow a younger and more diverse congregation. More information about the national work is available here: https://www.churchofengland.org/about/vision-and-strategy

A key priority for the Diocese of Lichfield in its Diocesan Strategic Framework is to reduce the age profile of congregation members. Various work strands are being developed to achieve this, including building on already strong relationships between churches and schools. Across some parishes good work is taking place ecumenically on initiatives that support younger people in their explorations of faith and build their confidence within the church.

In 2024, the Diocese of Lichfield was awarded £837,608 grant funding from the National Church Institutions Strategic Mission and Ministry Board (SMMIB). The Diocese has recently been awarded further SMMIB funding for new work beyond 2025, specifically operating in Stoke to establish new worshipping communities focused on those aged under 40

For further information do please contact the Bishop of Lichfield, the Rt Revd Michael Ipgrave, or the Archdeacon of Stoke, the Venerable Megan Smith. Contact details are available on the Diocese of Lichfield website.

The Diocese of Lichfield has licensed clergy ranging in age from 32 to 72 years. The most recent Ministry Statistics held by the National Church Institutions were published in 2024 and cover the years 2022-23. See: https://www.churchofengland.org/about/data-services/resources-publications-and-data#na The information can be found on sheet M in columns BA and BB of the 2022 data.

This data indicates that the Diocese of Lichfield has a total of 244 clergy in active ministry, including bishops, clergy, curates and non-parochial clergy. 17% of stipendiary clergy are under 40, with 50% being 40-59 and 33% being aged 60+. This is roughly comparable to the national landscape where 16% of stipendiary clergy are under 40, 55% are between 40-55 years old and 29% are aged 60+. It is not possible to say what age bracket the self-supporting clergy are, as this information is not held centrally.

For further information do please contact the Bishop of Lichfield, the Rt Revd Michael Ipgrave, or the Archdeacon of Stoke, the Venerable Megan Smith. Contact details are available on the Diocese of Lichfield website.

Thanks to the pioneering work of Dame Cicely Saunders, many modern hospices started off as church-affiliated institutions. The majority of these organisations and charities have now become affiliated to Hospice UK, which supports over 200 hospices across the UK. Adult hospices in the UK receive on average only a third of their funding from the state, and for the rest, many rely on charitable support.

Professional bodies in the hospice sector have given written and oral evidence to the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill Committee to highlight their concerns about the legislation.

The precarious funding of palliative and end of life care means not everyone has full and equal access to the care that they need, which is one of the reasons why it is wrong to legislate for assisted suicide. It is crucial that the public funding that hospices currently receive does not come into question in relation to the provision of assisted suicide, should the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill pass.

Most recently, the Rt Revd Lord Bishop of London gave written evidence to the Bill Committee on behalf of the Church of England. The evidence can be found here: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5901/cmpublic/TerminallyIllAdults/memo/TIAB28.htm

The Speaker's Committee has made no formal recomendations to the Electoral Commission since 12 December 2019.

The Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission is a statutory body established in part to examine performance and to review and approve the Electoral Commission's annual estimates, and five-year plan. The Committee also recommends the appointments of the Chair of the Electoral Commission and Electoral Commissioners.

As part of this statutory role, the Committee has reported on Commissioner appointments and the Commission's annual estimates.

The Committee does not have the power to direct or intervene in the Commission's operational work, but there is regular engagement to keep the Committee informed about ongoing activity.

According to the most recent ONS assessment, the median gender pay gap for all UK employees is 13.1% in April 2024. We are committed to going further and faster to close the gender pay gap. There are a number of measures within our landmark Employment Rights Bill which will support us in this ambition, and which will have a positive impact on women across the country.

In relation to my Hon. Friend’s constituency, the most recent ONS assessment states that the median gender pay gap for all employees who live in the constituency in April 2024 is 9.4%, down from 19.8 last year*, and significantly lower than the national figure.

*ONS recommend comparing GPG figures over the longer term. ONS publish GPG data back to 1997 however, the home parliamentary constituency table was published later. Given the small number of people in any parliamentary constituency included in the GPG calculations, ONS also produces a rating of the quality of this data. 2004 was the earliest that Newcastle-under-Lyme's GPG data was published and considered of "reasonable quality."

According to the most recent ONS assessment, the median gender pay gap for all UK employees is 13.1% in April 2024. We are committed to going further and faster to close the gender pay gap. There are a number of measures within our landmark Employment Rights Bill which will support us in this ambition, and which will have a positive impact on women across the country.

In relation to my Hon. Friend’s constituency, the most recent ONS assessment states that the median gender pay gap for all employees who live in the constituency in April 2024 is 9.4%, down from 19.8 last year*, and significantly lower than the national figure.

*ONS recommend comparing GPG figures over the longer term. ONS publish GPG data back to 1997 however, the home parliamentary constituency table was published later. Given the small number of people in any parliamentary constituency included in the GPG calculations, ONS also produces a rating of the quality of this data. 2004 was the earliest that Newcastle-under-Lyme's GPG data was published and considered of "reasonable quality."

My responsibilities relate to the work of the seven National Church Institutions, and I can give best-practice advice about diocesan and parish activity. I would be happy to meet with the Hon. Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme to discuss his constituency and any specific concerns he may have. However, he may find a discussion with the Bishop of Lichfield and the team in the Diocese of Lichfield, who are responsible for the condition of the church estate in Newcastle-under-Lyme, more productive. I will write to him to arrange an introduction.

The first meeting of the Council of Nations and Regions took place on Friday 11 September, convening regional Mayors from across England and the First Ministers of Scotland and Wales and the First and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland.

This first Council focused on investment and growth, ahead of the International Investment Summit. It was a key step in forging new partnerships across all levels of government, to ensure that all parts of the UK can secure, and benefit from, long term investment. This investment will increase economic growth and raise standards of living across the UK.

The British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme will only be applicable to businesses within Great Britain. This is due to the energy market being devolved within Northern Ireland, where a Shared Energy Market is operated with the Republic of Ireland.

We will continue to work in partnership with the Government of Northern Ireland to ensure the Industrial Strategy benefits people and businesses in Northern Ireland. This includes working with the Northern Ireland Executive to establish an Enhanced Investment Zone, as well as funding support for growth-driving sectors like advanced manufacturing and defence to further drive growth where Northern Ireland thrives.

The UK’s existing trade agreements with the Southern African Customs Union and Mozambique, and Eastern and Southern Africa successfully facilitate trade with Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe, and we plan to continue to support their implementation. Angola is not currently covered by these agreements, but there are provisions available should they wish to join, and they are eligible for duty-free, quota-free access to the UK through our Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS). None of these partner governments have requested a country-specific trade agreement. In addition, the nine (UK) Trade Envoys for Africa will seek to develop high level relationships with key decision makers to help further increase trade and investment.

No Ministers from the Department for Business and Trade will be attending the Business Summit in Windhoek, Namibia between 18 and 20 June 2025.

The UK is committed to working with Commonwealth partners and institutions to further strengthen intra-Commonwealth trade and investment. For example, at the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, the Foreign Secretary announced UK funding for the Commonwealth Standards Network (CSN) and the Commonwealth Investment Network (CIN).

The CSN reduces barriers to trade across the Commonwealth by supporting members to meet international standards and thus increase their access to international markets.

The CIN supports small and vulnerable members access investment opportunities through knowledge exchange, capacity building and facilitating relationships with private sector stakeholder groups.

This Government regularly discusses and takes action to improve mutual supply chain resilience with Commonwealth partners via our network of bilateral, plurilateral and multilateral alliances. Our information sharing MOU with Australia, recent FTA with India, dialogues with partners including Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and discussions at the G7, G20, OECD, and WTO reflect the commitment we share to promoting long-term economic stability through transparent, diversified, and sustainable global supply chains. We look forward to continuing discussions at the Commonwealth Trade Ministers Meeting later this month.

The Office for Investment (OfI) works with stakeholders across Staffordshire and Newcastle Under Lyme to promote strategic Investment opportunities to create high quality job growth in the region. OfI has funded a strategic key account management initiative in Staffordshire and Newcastle Under Lyme, to provide direct support to investors.

I am delighted that Keele University, in Newcastle-under-Lyme, is ambitious to grow their successful Science and Innovation Park, and the OfI is supporting their work to bring this forward.

The Department for Business and Trade discusses a number of issues with partners across the Caribbean and the Southern Africa community aimed at increasing bilateral investment. In addition, the UK’s Trade Envoys for those regions will seek to develop high level relationships with key decision makers to help further increase trade and investment.

There is a strong ecosystem of skills and employment support, across Staffordshire and Newcastle -Under Lyme, co-ordinated through county, district and borough councils, in partnership with national government and not for profit organisations.

The Department for Business and Trade offers a range of business support services which we will be building with measures being announced in the Small Business Strategy later this year. Our support helps businesses start, grow, invest, and export, creating opportunities across the country, including communities in Staffordshire and Newcastle-under-Lyme.

The UK Internal Market Scheme enables businesses to move goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland without customs proceses where products are not at risk of entering the EU.

From 1 May, new arrangements for parcels and freight movements have significantly simplified the process for providing information and moving relevant products, and the Government has also announced it will continue important Trader Support Service arrangements beyond 2026.

The Government will continue to guarantee unfettered access for Northern Ireland’s businesses to the rest of the UK market on a permanent basis, and take forward its manifesto commitment to protect the UK internal market going forward.

The Secretary of State for Business and Trade continues to have regular discussions with all Cabinet colleagues, including the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on the best ways to deliver economic growth that raises living standards and puts money in people’s pockets.

This Government is driving long-term, inclusive growth through our Industrial Strategy, Trade Strategy, Small Business Strategy and Plan to Make Work Pay.

Our recent landmark economic deal with the United States and Free Trade Agreement with India will improve access to important markets for Northern Ireland businesses.

I have been working closely with Ceramics UK and local MPs on the challenges facing the sector. My department will continue to consider all possible options where support may be given.

The Trade Strategy will set out the Government’s approach to maximising trade opportunities in support of the UK’s growth mission, for all sectors and regions. The United Kingdom currently has anti-dumping measures in place on ceramic tiles and ceramic tableware & kitchenware originating from China. The UK ceramics industry may apply for an investigation from the Trade Remedies Authority if it is being injured by unfair trading practices.

Officials from the Department for Business and Trade and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office are continuing to work closely with the Commonwealth Secretariat and other Commonwealth members to strengthen intra-Commonwealth trade and investment, ahead of the Commonwealth Trade Ministers Meeting in June. I’m presently planning to travel to Namibia for the Commonwealth Trade Ministers Meeting.

This will be an opportunity for Commonwealth partners to strengthen cooperation on both intra-Commonwealth trade issues, including trade digitalisation and inward investment, as well as our shared support for the rules-based international trading system ahead of the 14^th WTO Ministerial Conference next year.

The government is working hard to ensure that the current and future skills system supports the low carbon economy. We will support workers in high-carbon industry by creating good green jobs in our country’s industrial heartlands – enabling people to move into low-carbon roles by drawing upon their wealth of skills and experience. Skills England will work closely with the Industrial Strategy Advisory Council to understand the skills needs of high-growth sectors, including Clean Energy Industries, and will bring together key partners to better meet these needs.

DBT works closely with the ceramics sector through Ceramics UK and directly with Ceramic businesses to understand its challenges and provide support to help its global competitiveness.

My department also provides limited support to the ceramics sector through our Supercharger scheme.

The Department for Business and Trade works across Sub-Saharan Africa offering direct support to UK businesses looking to expand their business in the region. DBT focuses on markets, sectors, and deals where the UK has a competitive edge. The nine new Trade Envoys for Africa, recently announced by the Government, will seek to develop high level relationships with key decision makers to help further increase trade and investment. In addition, the UK is also actively expanding trade with Africa through nine trade agreements, including with 15 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The Department for Business and Trade network work with local stakeholders to promote investment opportunities in the region to investors wishing to set up in the area. We work with clients to understand their requirements and to reduce barriers which inform the client’s decision to locate in the region.

The funding of a Key Account Management programme is a strategic initiative designed to support FDI by strengthening relationships with existing foreign investors in the Midlands regions. It directs FDI support to businesses playing a crucial role in regional economies, helping foster a conducive environment for businesses to thrive, expand and nurture relationships with investors.

Statistics show trade between the UK's four nations was worth around £129 billion in 2019, and is particularly important to the economies of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. As part of meeting our Plan for Change, the Government wants to work to ensure growth across the country, raising living standards for working people across the UK. The Government has also launched IntertradeUK to advise on opportunities to promote and boost trade across the UK.

None of our partner governments in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) have requested a collective UK-SADC FTA. There are two customs unions within the SADC grouping, which our existing agreements aim to align with.

Our UK-Southern African Customs Union and Mozambique Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) is with Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia and South Africa, and our UK-Eastern and Southern African EPA is with Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles and Zimbabwe. The remaining SADC countries (Angola, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo , Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia) are not currently covered by our FTAs, but there are provisions available should they wish to join These remaining countries are eligible for duty-free quota-free access to the UK (on nearly all goods) through our Developing Countries Trading Scheme.

As Royal Mail is an independent business, the government does not have a role in its operational decisions including its responsiveness to enquiries from Members of Parliament.

Ministers and officials have discussions with Royal Mail on a regular basis in its capacity as the universal service provider.

In November, I met with Royal Mail’s CEO, Emma Gilthorpe, and stressed the importance of a reliable postal service.

Reinvigorating the UK’s relationship with our European partners is a priority for this Government.

The Prime Minister met with his Greek counterpart in December, when both underlined the importance of the bilateral relationship, and agreed that there were opportunities to deliver further trade and investment for both countries. HM Trade Commissioner for Europe’s visit to Athens in October 2024 also served to strengthen engagement with industry stakeholders.

My officials continue to work to identify opportunities for UK businesses and address barriers to trade with Greece.