Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with the Southern African Development Community since 5 September 2025.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary's future travel plans will be set out in the normal way in due course.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she plans to visit sub-Saharan southern Africa.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary's future travel plans will be set out in the normal way in due course.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the delivery of the Industrial Strategy on people in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme and (b) Staffordshire.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
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.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with the African Union since 5 September 2025.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary's future travel plans will be set out in the normal way in due course.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, 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.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
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.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken to (a) improve patient care and (b) reduce waiting times in north Staffordshire.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Tackling waiting lists is a key priority for the Government. Between July 2024 and June 2025, we delivered 5.2 million additional appointments, compared to the previous year, which is more than double our pledge of two million. This marks a vital first step in delivering the constitutional standard that 92% of patients, including those in north Staffordshire, wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment by March 2029.
North Staffordshire is part of the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board (ICB). As of August 2025, the latest published data, the total waiting list in this ICB stood at 139,133, 63.3% of which were waiting within 18 weeks. This is an improvement from 57.2% in August 2024 and is above the August 2025 national average of 61%.
The Government is committed not only to ensuring that people are seen on time but also to ensuring that they have the best possible experience when using NHS England’s services. Empowering patients with greater choice and control is central to this effort.
The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out wide ranging reforms to improve patients’ access to and experience of care, from reducing unnecessary appointments to faster and more local diagnostics.
The 10-Year Health Plan sets out a transformed vision for planned care by 2035, where the majority of interactions no longer take place in a hospital building, instead happening virtually, online, or via neighbourhood services. Planned care will be more efficient, timely, and effective, and will put control in the hands of patients.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the activities of the Chinese government in sub-Saharan Africa on (a) her Department's objectives and (b) the UK's international role.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government monitors all such matters closely, but continues to develop its foreign policy objectives and priorities in different parts of the world according to our shared interests and values, irrespective of the activities of other countries.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the activities of the Chinese government in the Caribbean on (a) her Department's objectives and (b) the UK's international role.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government monitors all such matters closely, but continues to develop its foreign policy objectives and priorities in different parts of the world according to our shared interests and values, irrespective of the activities of other countries.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the activities of the Chinese government in the Pacific on (a) her Department's objectives and (b) the UK's international role.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government monitors all such matters closely, but continues to develop its foreign policy objectives and priorities in different parts of the world according to our shared interests and values, irrespective of the activities of other countries.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what engagement she has had with the Tenant Farmers Association since her appointment.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
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.