Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the equality of access to public services in rural areas.

Public bodies, in exercising their statutory responsibilities under the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED), consider the adequacy of equality of access to public services, including through the use of tools such as Equality Impact Assessments.

We are already working across Government to ensure that all policy decision making is rural proofed, which will help ensure that rural communities are not disadvantaged by policy developments and their implementation.