Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what percentage of food procured in the public sector is produced domestically.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Data collection on the extent to which public sector settings are serving food from local sustainable sources is currently underway. We expect the work to be completed by Summer 2027.
The Government is open to considering all lawful means of achieving its ambition that half of all food purchased across the public sector should be locally produced or certified to higher environmental standards.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to increase the number of postal workers in South Shropshire.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As Royal Mail is an independent business, the government is not involved in its operational matters including decisions around recruitment and workforce levels.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to improve access to support services for veterans in rural areas.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
This government is committed to ensuring that veterans and their families are easily able to access support across the country when and where it is needed, including rural or remote areas.
Last year we launched a new Veterans Strategy which recognises veterans as a national asset and resets the nation’s relationship with those who have served. Alongside this, we launched the £50 million VALOUR programme, which will make it easier for veterans to access the care and support they deserve.
The first phase of VALOUR-Recognised Centres (VRC) will open shortly and the application process for the second round of funding is ongoing. A new VALOUR digital service will also be available to help veterans and their families find the right support, especially those unable to travel to a VRC. It will include a broader range of support providers with a new process for organisations to be added.
For general support, MOD Veterans’ Services provides tailored, holistic information, guidance and welfare support to those who need it through a national network of Case Managers across the UK, ensuring that individuals and families receive comprehensive, joined-up support tailored to their needs.
In addition, dedicated support is available to veterans at risk of or experiencing homelessness through Op FORITUDE, or for mental and physical health needs through Ops COURAGE and RESTORE. Employment support is delivered through Op ASCEND and programmes such as the Career Transition partnership. For those in contact with or at risk of contact with the Criminal Justice System support is available through Op NOVA.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what action is being taken to support farming in protected landscapes.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As a result of the 2025 Spending Review, Defra secured a strong financial settlement. The Government has allocated a record £11.8 billion to sustainable farming and food production over this parliament. This includes funding for the Environmental Land Management schemes paid to farmers increasing by around 150%, rising from £800 million in 2023/24 towards £2 billion by 2028/29.
The settlement also includes funding for the Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL) programme. Earlier this year the Government announced it would extend the FiPL programme for another three years until March 2029, with £30 million in funding next year.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the court backlogs.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
This Government has already invested significantly in the system – in uncapped sitting days for 2026/27, court buildings and technology, and in legal professionals with significant investment in legal aid. Only by pulling every lever we have – investment, efficiency and reform – can we turn the tide on the backlog and begin to deliver faster and fairer justice.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure patients diagnosed with Friedrich’s Ataxia can access Omavelexolone through the NHS.
Answered by Preet Kaur Gill - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new, licensed medicines represent a clinically and cost-effective use of NHS resources. The NHS in England is legally required to fund medicines recommended by NICE.
NICE has unfortunately been unable to develop guidance for the NHS on the use of omaveloxolone for treating Friedreich's ataxia in people 16 years old and over because the company, Biogen, withdrew its evidence submission. NICE will reopen the appraisal if the company decides to make a new evidence submission.
NHS England does not fund medicines where the company has not engaged with NICE. This is to avoid a potential pathway for circumventing the NICE appraisal process.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support upland farmers in South Shropshire constituency.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Earlier this year, the Government extended the Farming in Protected Landscapes programme for another three years. It includes support for upland farmers and land managers in South Shropshire’s Shropshire Hills National Landscape.
Defra’s Environmental Land Management schemes include a comprehensive offer to support management of a wide range of different upland grassland and moorlands. The reformed SFI offer opens to small farmers and farmers not yet in environmental land management revenue agreements later this month.
The Government has also launched a place-based, community-led uplands project. It will test new ways of working and inform policy grounded in local needs and lived experience.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal steps her Department is taking to increase rural productivity.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government allocated a record amount to sustainable farming and food production over this Parliament at the Spending Review 2025. This will boost productivity and protect the natural ecosystems underpinning food production and broader economy activity, and support food and economic security.
On gigabit broadband, the government continues to invest in rollout of digital infrastructure, helping to bring fast and reliable broadband and mobile coverage to hard-to-reach places across the UK, including in rural areas through Project Gigabit and Shared Rural Network.
The government also continues to provide significant consolidated transport funding for local places, beyond our city regions, through the Local Transport Grant.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to prevent potholes in South Shropshire constituency.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government has confirmed a record £7.3 billion investment into local highways maintenance over the next four years. By confirming funding allocations for the next four-year period, authorities have certainty to plan ahead and shift from short-term fixes to proactive, preventative maintenance. South Shropshire sits within Shropshire Council, which is eligible to receive £101,041,790 in highways maintenance funding over the next four years.
To improve accountability and drive better outcomes, all local highway authorities are now required to publish annual transparency reports on the condition of their networks and their maintenance plans. These reports are publicly available. The Department has also introduced a traffic‑light rating system, under which authorities are assessed annually and rated red, amber or green based on road condition, levels of investment and adoption of best practice, including the adoption of preventative maintenance to prevent potholes. The ratings are intended both to highlight where improvement is needed and to support continuous progress, with targeted assistance available to authorities to help strengthen capability and performance.
Shropshire Council received an overall amber rating, with individual scorecards showing amber for condition, amber for spend and amber for best practice.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what action she is taking to help improve the availability of domestic abuse services in rural areas.
Answered by Natalie Fleet - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Every victim of violence against women and girls (VAWG), whether in a city or a rural village, should be able to access the help they need. In the Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Strategy, we committed to reform how victim’s services are commissioned to ensure that support is consistent, delivers what victims and survivors need, and is fit for purpose. To support this transformation, we will deliver a new national commissioning statement to replace the current National Statement of Expectations and VAWG Commissioning Toolkit. This statement will provide clear definitions of ‘by-and-for' and specialist services, helping commissioners allocate funding more effectively and support local areas to tailor their provision to their local communities, including rural victims.
On 15th June, we launched two new competitions to shape the future delivery of helplines and advocacy services. These initiatives are designed to strengthen and expand access to vital support for victims of Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) across England and Wales, ensuring help is available to victims in their time of greatest need, regardless of location. We will share further updates on the outcomes of these competitions in due course.
Last year, the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra) commenced a call for evidence across a network of rural stakeholders to inform our understanding of the availability of support services and effective practice to provide support in rural areas. This research will help to confront the disparities in the provision and inform our future work to address the disparities of provision.