Written questions by Jogee.

If his Department will support the establishment of Centres of Excellence for each less survivable cancer type.

To support cancer care for rarer and less survivable cancer type, the Government is committed to helping the National Health Service to diagnose all cancers earlier and to treat them faster.The Government is also committed to improving waiting times for cancer treatment, so that people with cancer, including less survivable cancer, can get access to the care they need more quickly. As the first step to ensuring faster diagnosis and treatment, the National Health Service is delivering an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week.Moreover, full roll out of non-specific symptom (NSS) pathways, designed to speed up the diagnosis of cancer, has been achieved across England. NSS pathways introduce a route to possible diagnosis for patients who display symptoms that could indicate cancer, but which do not align to specific cancers, often the case for less survivable cancers. The new non-specific pathway complements current cancer diagnostic pathways, as well as providing elements that can be applied to existing pathways. The National Cancer Plan, planned for publication later in 2025, will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, including those with rarer and less survivable cancer, as well as speeding up diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology. The Department ran a public Call for Evidence to determine priorities for the plan; responses are currently being analysed. The plan will seek to improve every aspect of cancer care, to improve the experience and outcomes for people with cancer, including less survivable cancer.For these reasons, the Department does not currently have plans to support the establishment of Centres of Excellence for each survivable cancer type.

Which Ministers from his Department will attend the Commonwealth Business Summit in Windhoek between 18 and 20 June 2025.

No Ministers from the Department for Business and Trade will be attending the Business Summit in Windhoek, Namibia between 18 and 20 June 2025.

Whether he plans to include provision in the NHS 10-Year Plan for the National Health Service on the respiratory health of people living in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency and (b) Staffordshire.

The 10-Year Health Plan will deliver the three big shifts our National Health Service needs to be fit for the future: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention. All of these are relevant to improving respiratory health in all parts of the county, including in Newcastle-under-Lyme and across Staffordshire.More tests and scans delivered in the community will allow for earlier diagnosis, better joint working between services, and greater use of apps and wearable technology will all help people manage their long-term conditions, including respiratory conditions, closer to home. Earlier diagnosis of conditions will help prevent deterioration and improve survival rates. Taking action to reduce the causes of the biggest killers, such as enabling a smoke free generation, can further help prevent lung conditions.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of negotiating country-specific trade agreements between the United Kingdom and (a) Zimbabwe, (b) Botswana, (c) Namibia, (d) Mozambique, (e) Angola and (f) South Africa.

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.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the political situation in South Sudan.

The political and security situation in South Sudan is becoming increasingly unstable. We are using our diplomatic levers at our disposal to call for de-escalation of ongoing violence across the country and for President Kiir to release political detainees, including First Vice President Riek Machar from house arrest. On 27 March, we joined likeminded partners to call on President Kiir to release First Vice President Machar under house arrest and prevent further escalation. On 8 May, the UK joined a majority of UN Security Council members in voting in favour of extending the mandate of the UN Peacekeeping Mission in South Sudan. On 30 May, we again joined a majority of Council members in voting in favour of the UN Arms Embargo and Sanctions Regime on South Sudan, preventing the flow of weapons to armed groups. We will continue to work with partners, including the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the African Union and the UN, to urge the Government of South Sudan to implement their Peace Agreement.

What recent steps he has taken to encourage trade between Commonwealth countries.

The UK is committed to working with Commonwealth partners and institutions to further strengthen intra-Commonwealth trade and investment. For example, at the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, the Foreign Secretary announced UK funding for the Commonwealth Standards Network (CSN) and the Commonwealth Investment Network (CIN). The CSN reduces barriers to trade across the Commonwealth by supporting members to meet international standards and thus increase their access to international markets. The CIN supports small and vulnerable members access investment opportunities through knowledge exchange, capacity building and facilitating relationships with private sector stakeholder groups.

What assessment he has made of trends in the level of the uptake of vaccines by children from ethnic minority communities in England.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) monitors trends in the level of childhood vaccination rates by upper tier local authority (UTLA), region, and country. The UKHSA does not routinely collect data on trends in the level of the uptake of vaccines by children from ethnic minority communities in England. An assessment of coverage trends and ethnicity was published in the Lancet in 2023, and is available at the following link:https://www.thelancet.com/journals/eclinm/article/PIIS2589-5370(23)00458-3/fulltextData on the coverage of all routine childhood immunisations is published quarterly by the UKHSA, and is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/cover-of-vaccination-evaluated-rapidly-cover-programme-2024-to-2025-quarterly-dataAnnual coverage data is also published by NHS England, and is available at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-immunisation-statistics/england-2023-24

What assessment he has made of trends in the level of the uptake of vaccines by children in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency and (b) Staffordshire.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) monitors trends in the level of childhood vaccination rates by upper tier local authority (UTLA), region and country level. Newcastle-under-Lyme falls within the Staffordshire UTLA.In Staffordshire, children aged five years old in 2023/2024 had a 94.8% coverage for the first dose of the Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) vaccine. This is a 0.7 percentage point decrease from 2022/2023, when the coverage was 95.5% but is 3.6 percentage points above the England average which was 91.9%.Coverage of the 6-in-1 vaccine, which includes diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis also known as whooping cough, polio, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) and hepatitis B, in the same age group was 95.6% in 2023/2024, a 0.7 percentage point decrease from 96.3% in 2022/2023 but 3.7 percentage points above the England average of 92.6%.Data on coverage of all routine childhood immunisations are published quarterly by UKHSA and annually by NHS England, and are available at the following links:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/cover-of-vaccination-evaluated-rapidly-cover-programme-2024-to-2025-quarterly-datahttps://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-immunisation-statistics/england-2023-24

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the 2025 Commonwealth Health Ministers Meeting.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has worked closely with the Department for Health and Social Care in the run up to the 2025 Commonwealth Health Ministers Meeting, attended by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health and Prevention, on 17 May. This meeting was an opportunity for the UK and our Commonwealth partners to exchange views and strengthen cooperation on shared health challenges. Commonwealth Health Ministers adopted an Outcome Statement outlining commitments to build equitable, resilient and sustainably financed health systems that prioritise vulnerable member countries. The statement focused on a number UK health priorities including cancer, digital health, mental health and antimicrobial resistance.

What recent steps he has taken to improve (a) maternity safety and (b) prevent brain injuries during childbirth.

NHS England is currently delivering a three-year plan for maternity and neonatal services, which brings together recommendations from previous independent inquiries, and sets national measures to make care safer, more personalised and more equitable. Significant improvements have been made through the plan, including the roll out of maternal mental health services, implementation of Version 3 of the Saving Babies Lives Care Bundle, establishment of 14 maternal medicine networks across England, and Equity and Equality Action Plans being published by all local areas to tackle inequalities for women and babies from ethnic backgrounds.To prevent brain injuries during childbirth, the Department has invested £7.8 million to develop the Avoiding Brain Injury in Childbirth programme which will reduce the number of avoidable brain injuries that occur during childbirth. This will be implemented by NHS England and will provide staff with the tools and right training to identify, intervene and manage obstetric emergencies as well as identifying and better identify signs that the baby is showing distress during labour.Additionally, the Maternity and Newborn Safety Investigations (MNSI) Programme investigates certain cases of potential severe brain injury that occur in the first seven days of life. MNSI investigations seek to improve maternity safety and reduce the prevalence of adverse outcomes through providing learning to the health system via reports at a local, regional and national level.

When the next meeting of the NHS England Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG) will take place; and what steps the Government plans to take to fund treatments previously reviewed by CPAG.

The NHS England Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG) continues to meet on a monthly basis to consider policy propositions and service specification propositions that are categorised as in year service. The next scheduled meeting was due for 4 June 2025. The further review of treatments previously considered by CPAG that require significant investment will be deferred until such point that recurrent revenue funding can be identified to support new discretionary spend commitments.

What discussions he has had with his Commonwealth counterparts on taking steps to strengthen supply chains.

This Government regularly discusses and takes action to improve mutual supply chain resilience with Commonwealth partners via our network of bilateral, plurilateral and multilateral alliances. Our information sharing MOU with Australia, recent FTA with India, dialogues with partners including Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and discussions at the G7, G20, OECD, and WTO reflect the commitment we share to promoting long-term economic stability through transparent, diversified, and sustainable global supply chains. We look forward to continuing discussions at the Commonwealth Trade Ministers Meeting later this month.

What assessment he has made of the link between poor lung health and poverty.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton on 28 April 2025 to Question 46400.

What progress she has made on reducing the average waiting time for driving tests in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme and (b) Staffordshire.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) main priority is upholding road safety standards while it works hard to reduce car practical driving test waiting times. Significant progress has already been made as part of the DVSA’s 7-point plan to reduce waiting times with 1.95 million tests delivered last year nationally, but there is more work to be done.The current waiting time for a car practical driving test at Newcastle-under-Lyme and Stafford is 24 weeks.On the 23 April, the Secretary of State for Transport appeared before the Transport Select Committee and announced that DVSA will take further actions to reduce waiting times for all customers across Great Britain. Further information on these actions and progress on DVSA’s 7-point plan, which was set out last year, can be found on GOV.UK. DVSA is continuing to recruit as many DEs as possible. As a result of recent recruitment campaigns, offers of employment have been made to two potential new driving examiners (DE), one for Stoke-on-Trent (Cobridge) and one for Newcastle-under-Lyme.

What discussions he has had with NHS England on the adequacy of the data available to help clinical staff reduce the time taken to (a) diagnose and (b) treat cancer patients in (i) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency, (ii) Staffordshire and (iii) England.

Officials in the Department regularly engage with NHS England on the adequacy of the data available, to improve performance against cancer waiting times.The Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board (ICB) is introducing primary care symptom-based pathways, designed to support cancer referrals and to reduce the number of referrals into cancer pathways, where the risk of cancer is very low or more effective alternative referral pathways exist. The ICB intends to pilot clinical decision tools, which will prompt general practitioners to order relevant tests and suggest alternative referral pathways.My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care announced that a National Cancer Plan for England will be published this year, supporting the Prime Minister’s mission to build a National Health Service fit for the future and reduce the number of lives lost to cancer. The plan will outline how we will improve outcomes for all cancer patients, by speeding up diagnosis and treatment and ensuring access to the latest treatments and technologies.

What recent steps the Commission has taken to increase awareness of (a) The Code of Conduct and (b)The Guide to the Rules relating to the Conduct of Members to hon. Members elected (i) at and (i) since the General Election 2024.

It is a Member’s responsibility to read and adhere to The Code of Conduct and the Guide to the Rules relating to the Conduct of Members.All new Members were offered a 1:1 meeting with the Registry Team in the first month after the General Election. Every Member who attended was given a hard copy of the Code of the Code and the Guide to the Rules.The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards’ webpages contain information and Advice Notes on the Code of Conduct and Guide to the Rules.Guidance on registering via the Registration Portal can be accessed via Parlinet.The Committee on Standards has held a drop-in meeting where Members could discuss the Code, and further such drop-in sessions may be held as required.Any Member who requires advice on the registration of interests or the rules relating to declaration and lobbying for reward or consideration should contact the Registrar of Members’ Financial Interests at commonsregistrar@parliament.uk.

What recent steps she has taken to help increase prosecution rates for offences relating to female genital mutilation.

This Government is dedicated to addressing female genital mutilation (FGM) and all forms of violence against women and girls (VAWG), aiming to halve VAWG in the next decade. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is actively working to increase FGM prosecutions.The first conviction in England and Wales for conspiring to commit FGM was obtained in September 2024. In February 2025, I welcomed the Court of Appeal’s decision to increase the sentence under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme from four and a half years’ imprisonment to seven years’ imprisonment, reflecting the seriousness of the offender’s crimes.Each CPS Area has a dedicated FGM lead with expertise in the prosecution of FGM cases to improve the CPS’ response to these cases.The CPS provides early investigative advice to police in all FGM cases. Under the CPS and National Police Chiefs’ Council joint protocol on FGM, investigators are directed to consult with the CPS at the earliest possible stage. The protocol ensures a robust and consistent criminal justice response, and aims to improve the identification, investigation and prosecution of FGM cases.The CPS’ prosecution guidance and specialist training on FGM support prosecutors to navigate the complexities and sensitivities of these cases.

What assessment he has made of the link between lung health and (a) air pollution and (b) indoor air quality in (i) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency and (ii) Staffordshire.

Poor air quality is one of the largest environmental risks to public health in the United Kingdom. Epidemiological studies have shown that long-term exposure to air pollution, over years or lifetimes, reduces life expectancy, due to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases and lung cancer. Short-term exposure, over hours or days, to elevated levels of air pollution can also cause a range of health impacts, including effects on lung function, exacerbation of asthma, increases in respiratory and cardiovascular hospital admissions, and mortality. Further information is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/health-matters-air-pollution/health-matters-air-pollution

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many overseas diplomatic postings are waiting for a Head of Mission to be appointed.

Appointments to all Head of Mission roles, including Ambassadors and High Commissioners, are announced after the necessary internal processes have concluded, including approval through His Majesty The King and agreement from the host Government. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office ensures that all diplomatic posts are appropriately staffed, including with interim arrangements in place where necessary.

Which Minister attended the 2025 Commonwealth Health Ministers Meeting; and what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of outcomes from that meeting.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health and Prevention attended the 2025 Commonwealth Health Ministers Meeting on 17 May 2025. The meeting was an opportunity for the United Kingdom and our Commonwealth partners to exchange views and strengthen cooperation on shared health challenges.Commonwealth health ministers adopted an Outcome Statement outlining commitments to build equitable, resilient, and sustainably financed health systems that prioritise vulnerable member countries, that the UK supported. The statement included several UK health priorities including cancer, digital health, mental health, and antimicrobial resistance.