Adam Jogee

Following an extensive public consultation, which gathered input from over 11,000 individuals, the Church of England has made significant progress in the process of appointing the next Archbishop of Canterbury.

The full membership of the Crown Nomination Commission (CNC), including the local and global representatives, has now been published here: https://www.churchofengland.org/about/governance/archbishops/canterbury-crown-nominations-commission/members-canterbury-crown-nominations-commission and will soon hold its first meeting, with further meetings in July and September 2025.

The CNC members will first establish a ‘Role Profile’ and ‘Person Specification’ for the next Archbishop of Canterbury. They will also review a longlist of candidates, determine a shortlist and conduct interviews, before voting to submit a name to the Prime Minister and the Crown in the usual manner. The committee is expected to be in a position to make this recommendation to the Prime Minister in the autumn of this year.

The Church of England General Synod voted on this issue in 2012 and 2022 and on both occasions there was near-unanimous opposition to a change in the law. The position of the Church has always been grounded in a concern for the welfare of the most vulnerable and the theological principles set out in scripture to care for those in need, the widow, orphan and stranger. 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. Most recently, the Rt Revd Lord Bishop of London gave written evidence to the Bill Committee on behalf of the Church of England. This evidence can be found here: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5901/cmpublic/TerminallyIllAdults/memo/TIAB28.htm

The House of Bishops and National Church Institutions are in regular dialogue with other churches and faiths in the UK. Leaders from a variety of faith traditions, including the Church of England, issued a joint statement in November 2024 against the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill and expressed their shared concerns with the legislation. You can read their letter here: https://www.churchofengland.org/media/press-releases/faith-leaders-join-oppose-bill-legalise-assisted-suicide

In April 2025 the Bishops of London, Gloucester, Bristol, Dover, Stepney, Croydon and Aston issued a joint letter with 105 other senior women of faith to highlight the impact of the Terminally Ill Adults Bill on vulnerable women

https://www.theosthinktank.co.uk/in-the-news/2025/04/04/open-letter-from-women-of-faith-on-assisted-dying

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 national resilience review is considering our resilience against the full spectrum of risks the UK faces, including extreme weather. It is considering existing resilience policy and practice to identify what should be kept, changed or improved to ensure we are best prepared now and into the future. The review will conclude in Spring 2025.

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 8th October is attached.

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 government’s Plan to Make Work Pay will strengthen employment rights for people, at all stages of their working lives, boosting fairness and equality in the workplace. Measures in the Employment Right’s Bill to make it easier to access flexible working may help older workers balance their work with changes in their personal circumstances. The existing right to one week of unpaid carer’s leave from day one may help older workers manage work and care commitments. The government is currently reviewing the implementation of unpaid Carer’s Leave, including examining the potential benefits of introducing paid Carer’s Leave, while being mindful of the cost and impact on small employers.

The Industrial Strategy is a 10-year plan to back our strengths and realise Britain’s potential, targeting government investment towards eight-growth driving sectors (IS-8). There are clusters of the IS-8 sectors across the whole country, and the policy package addresses the biggest constraints to growth highlighted by businesses in these sectors.

To ensure robust and comprehensive monitoring and evaluation of the Industrial Strategy, we have chosen six economic indicators that reflect a range of desirable objectives for the IS-8 and the economy as a whole, which will be tracked at the economy-wide, sector and place level. Monitoring and evaluation of the Strategy will be overseen by the Industrial Strategy Advisory Council who will take a data-led approach.

The Department for Business and Trade supports regional growth by working with local areas to attract private investment, helping business to grow and export, creating jobs and opportunities in Staffordshire and Newcastle-under-Lyme. As part of the recent Office for Investment expansion, we work with local areas, leveraging public finance from institutions like the National Wealth Fund and the British Business Bank, to deliver strategic investments, aligned with the 10-year Infrastructure and Industrial strategies.

Carlsberg Britvic plans to invest £4 million in Staffordshire, supporting hundreds of jobs, and the approval, of the M54-M6 link road, will further boost the local economy.

We are strengthening rights for parents through the Employment Rights Bill, including making Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave ‘day one’ rights for qualifying employees, removing restrictions on taking Paternity Leave after Shared Parental Leave, strengthening flexible working rights, and bolstering protections for new and expectant mothers. We also launched the Parental Leave Review on 1 July which will consider how parental leave can better reflect modern work and childcare realities and support working families.

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.

I refer the member for Newcastle-under-Lyme to the answer my predecessor gave on 3 September 2025 to UIN 71764.

The Department for Business and Trade engages closely with partner governments and businesses to gather feedback on tariff arrangements, including Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) with African and Caribbean countries. Whilst this feedback is not shared externally, the Government does publish two sets of UK trade data with developing countries: statistics on UK utilisation of tariff preferences under trade agreements, and country factsheets outlining broader trade relationships.

These data sources are available on the gov.uk website.

The UK-Kenya Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) does not contain expiry provisions or ‘sunset clauses’, so preferential market access will continue indefinitely. The EPA does include a ‘rendez-vous clause’, committing Parties to conclude negotiations on areas such as investment. This was discussed at the UK-Kenya EPA Committee of Senior Officials in 2022.

At the 2023 Ministerial EPA Council, both sides agreed to accelerate efforts to remove investment barriers, and the UK held workshops with Kenyan officials in March 2025 to support this.

The Department expects to be represented at the African Business Chamber’s November 2025 Business Forum. The Department is happy to meet with the African Business Chamber to discuss further our work.

Details of the meetings held by Ministers of the Department for Business and Trade are available on the transparency pages of gov.uk.

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dbt-ministers-transparency-publications

Through the Employment Rights Bill the Government will ensure that Paternity Leave and Unpaid Parental Leave are ‘day one’ rights, removing continuity of service requirements for employees.

In the Plan to Make Work Pay the Government committed to a review of the parental leave system. This review was launched on 1 July and will explore how the system can better support working families and reflect the realities of modern work and childcare. All current and upcoming parental leave and pay entitlements will be in scope.

Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) support inclusive, sustained economic growth and promote regional integration by providing duty-free access for partner exports to the UK and generous cumulation provisions aligned with AfCFTA objectives. Without this access, current trade faces significant risks.

The Department engages closely with partner governments and businesses to gather feedback on tariff arrangements. The Government publishes two key sources of UK trade data with developing countries: statistics on UK utilisation of tariff preferences under trade agreements, and country factsheets outlining broader trade relationships. These data sources, alongside feedback, have shaped EPA priorities, as articulated in the UK's Trade Strategy.

The UK's Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) do not contain expiry provisions or 'sunset clauses'. The preferential market access they provide to developing country partners will continue indefinitely. EPAs do include review clauses allowing for discussion on areas such as investment, competition, and services.

The Department's approach to these reviews will be guided by dialogue with partners and aligned with UK growth and development objectives, as per the Trade Strategy. There is no obligation for partners to negotiate where they are unwilling. The Strategy also commits to engaging governments and businesses on expanding EPAs to include services. Broader stakeholder consultation will be considered in any review process.

The UK's Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) do not contain expiry provisions or 'sunset clauses'. The preferential market access they provide to developing country partners will continue indefinitely. EPAs do include review clauses allowing for discussion on areas such as investment, competition, and services.

The Department's approach to these reviews will be guided by dialogue with partners and aligned with UK growth and development objectives, as per the Trade Strategy. There is no obligation for partners to negotiate where they are unwilling. The Strategy also commits to engaging governments and businesses on expanding EPAs to include services. Broader stakeholder consultation will be considered in any review process.

The UK's Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) do not contain expiry provisions or 'sunset clauses'. The preferential market access they provide to developing country partners will continue indefinitely. EPAs do include review clauses allowing for discussion on areas such as investment, competition, and services.

The Department's approach to these reviews will be guided by dialogue with partners and aligned with UK growth and development objectives, as per the Trade Strategy. There is no obligation for partners to negotiate where they are unwilling. The Strategy also commits to engaging governments and businesses on expanding EPAs to include services. Broader stakeholder consultation will be considered in any review process.

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.