Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to increase the number of probation officers.

Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip

The Government recognises the vital role probation officers play in protecting the public and reducing reoffending. Recruitment and retention continue to be a priority and through these efforts we are starting to see the positive impact of a centralised recruitment process as a large number of qualified probation officers come through the pipeline.

In 2024/25, we exceeded our commitment to onboard 1,000 trainee probation officers, successfully onboarding 1,057. We are now going further, having committed to onboard a total of 1,300 trainee probation officers in 2025/26. Probation officer numbers have increased over both the last quarter and the last year. The Professional Qualification in Probation (PQiP) 20 recruitment campaign, which went live on the 19^th of January, will further support our efforts to maintain strong recruitment momentum and sustain the pipeline of future probation officers.

A retention toolkit has been developed, informed by research into the drivers of attrition. This toolkit supports local, regional, and national interventions and is used alongside structured exit interviews which were introduced to gather feedback and shape future actions. It is positive that we are seeing a continued reduction in Probation Service attrition.

Both probation officer numbers in post and leaving rates can be found at HM Prison and Probation Service workforce quarterly: September 2025 - GOV.UK

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to support the creation of well-paid jobs in a) Newcastle-under-Lyme and b) Staffordshire.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The Department for Business and Trade is supporting the creation of jobs and opportunities across the UK, including in Staffordshire and Newcastle-under-Lyme, by championing free trade agreements, supporting small and medium sized enterprises to export, securing foreign investment, developing the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy and investing in growth sectors like life sciences, advanced manufacturing and digital technologies.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what fiscal steps he is taking with Cabinet Colleagues to help lower energy bills for people in Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency.

Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

Government action at the Budget, to end the ECO scheme and shift 75% of the domestic Renewables Obligation to the exchequer, will remove an average of £150 of costs from energy bills from April. In addition, expanding the Warm Home Discount means around six million low‑income households will receive £150 this winter.

Through the Warm Homes Plan, the Governemt has also announced £15 billion to upgrade up to five million homes and help lift up to one million families out of fuel poverty by 2030.

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions her Department has had with Cabinet colleagues on UK representation at the 23rd meeting of the UN Tourism Committee on Tourism and Sustainability in April 2026.

Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

While the UK is not a member of UN Tourism, we maintain close and constructive working relationships with UN Tourism officials to ensure that UN resolutions relating to tourism appropriately reflect UK interests. DCMS officials work closely with colleagues across Government to align the UK’s tourism and sustainability priorities with wider international discussions and emerging best practice.

DCMS regularly engages in global tourism fora, including Ministerial participation in the UN Tourism Ministerial Summit and EU Sustainability Roundtable at the World Travel Market last year, as well as bilateral engagements with international counterparts, including discussions with the Spanish Minister for Tourism during a recent visit to Spain.

The Government remains committed to supporting sustainable tourism growth through a combination of domestic policy, bilateral engagement and multilateral cooperation, including active participation in relevant international fora where the UK is represented.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to support the creation of well-paid jobs in a) Newcastle-under-Lyme and b) Staffordshire.

Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

I refer the Honourable Member to the answer I gave to Written PQ 107250 on 28^th January 2026.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent engagement his Department has had with Action Bladder Cancer UK.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

As part of the Department’s engagement to inform the development of the forthcoming National Cancer Plan, officials from the Department’s cancer team have worked closely with patient organisations, clinicians, cancer partners and have considered over 11,000 responses to the call for evidence. These included submissions from organisations, such as Fight Bladder Cancer and Cancer52, of which Action Bladder Cancer UK is a member of, as well as from individuals.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland Executive on the voluntary sector in Northern Ireland.

Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

I meet frequently with Northern Ireland Executive Ministers on a range of issues. Most recently, my officials and I have been working in partnership with the Northern Ireland Executive to design and deliver the Local Growth Fund in Northern Ireland. Additionally, at the East-West Council in Belfast earlier this month, we discussed how the Connect Fund is supporting the work of voluntary organisations in sectors directly affecting Northern Ireland communities and encouraging civic East-West collaboration across the UK. I acknowledge the excellent work of voluntary organisations and the important services that they provide for communities in Northern Ireland. I am committed to working with the Northern Ireland Executive to support the voluntary sector in Northern Ireland now and in the future.

Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the voluntary sector in Northern Ireland.

Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

I meet regularly with Cabinet colleagues on a range of issues, including matters relating to the voluntary sector in Northern Ireland. Most recently, my officials have been working in partnership with the Grants Management Function of Cabinet Office for the delivery of the Northern Ireland Office Connect Fund, supporting the work of voluntary organisations in sectors directly affecting Northern Ireland communities and encouraging civic East-West collaboration across the UK.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps his Department has taken to reduce the number of women waiting for gynaecological treatment in a) Newcastle-under-Lyme and b) Staffordshire.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We are committed to returning to the National Health Service constitutional standard that 92% of patients are treated within 18 weeks of referral to consultant-led care, including in gynaecology, by March 2029.

The Department only holds data at a trust and integrated care board level. Newcastle-under-Lyme is served by the University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust (UHNB), and Staffordshire is served by the NHS Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board (SSOT ICB). Performance against this standard at the UHNB’s gynaecology service has improved by 7.6% since the Government came into office, to 55.5%, with a 16% reduction in the waiting list. At the SSOT ICB, performance for gynaecology services has improved by 6.9% to 55.2% over the same period, with a 15% reduction in waiting list size.

Our Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the reforms we are making to improve gynaecology waiting times, across England. This includes innovative models of care that offer care closer to home and in the community, piloting gynaecology pathways in community diagnostic centres for patients with post-menopausal bleeding, and increasing the relative funding available to incentivise providers to take on more gynaecology procedures.

Wider elective reforms will help cut waiting times for gynaecology services in Staffordshire and across England. These include more consistent clinical triage, tackling missed appointments, delivering new and expanded surgical hubs, and scaling up remote monitoring and use of patient-initiated follow ups.

We also provided new funding for general practices (GPs) to expand Advice and Guidance (A&G) services. A&G helps to keep patients out of hospital and delivers more care closer to home, saving time, protecting capacity, and improving care experience. A&G for gynaecology is available in all GPs within the SSOT ICB.

We are also introducing an “online hospital” via NHS Online. From 2027, people on certain pathways, including severe menopause symptoms and menstrual problems that may be a sign of endometriosis or fibroids, will have the choice of getting the specialist care they need from their home, providing additional appointments to cut waiting times.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking with international partners to help tackle organised immigration crime.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the answers I gave in departmental oral questions on 28 October on tackling organised immigration crime. Fraudulent visa agents also target those seeking to come to the UK on fake visas and the UK and India are cooperating to protect people from scams and tackle irregular migration at its source.

British forces on the front line in Afghanistan

TMT First in Newcastle-under-Lyme

75th anniversary of the Lyric Theatre Belfast

Investment and Growth in Antrim and Newtownabbey

Found: the meeting Members present: Tonia Antoniazzi (Chair); Chris Bloore; Claire Hanna; Simon Hoare; Adam Jogee

Found: the meeting Members present: Tonia Antoniazzi (Chair); Chris Bloore; Claire Hanna; Simon Hoare; Adam Jogee