David Williams MP: speeches

Speeches

• 26 Jun 2025 · Local Bus Services · Hansard source

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  It is no surprise that Stoke-on-Trent’s bus service improvement plan is among the best in the country. Thanks to funding from this Labour Government, dozens of new services have been delivered, such as the 36, connecting Kidsgrove to Hanley and Meir, and the 501, helping people get to Wolstanton retail park. Will the Minister join me in recognising the progress that Stoke-on-Trent has made with its bus network, and will he meet me to discuss how we can ensure that progress continues when funding ends next year?

• 26 Jun 2025 · Local Bus Services · Hansard source

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  2. What steps she is taking to help improve local bus services.

• 26 Jun 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  On my recent visit to Greenways primary academy in Stockton Brook, pupils were busy decorating plates kindly donated by the brilliant Steelite, showing off the artistic flair for which our creative city of Stoke-on-Trent is known. I learned during my visit that more than 70 children are now attending the school’s brilliant breakfast club, an initiative made possible by this Labour Government. Does the Leader of the House agree it is important that kids have hungry minds that are ready to learn rather than hungry bellies?

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I welcome this incredibly positive industrial strategy that will help us to harness Britain’s potential. The strategy rightly recognises that Stoke-on-Trent has been at the heart of the ceramics industry for centuries. Therefore, will the Secretary of State outline what the industrial strategy means for both our traditional ceramics companies, which produce the finest tableware, and for advanced ceramics with a view to the future?

• 19 Jun 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  As the Leader of the House knows, I have consistently raised in this place the support that our ceramics industry needs. This week, however, I come bearing good news from Stoke-on-Trent. Our iconic Moorcroft Pottery, adored the world over, has been saved from liquidation following its acquisition by Will Moorcroft, the founder’s grandson. Will the Leader of the House join me in congratulating Will, and does she agree that support for the sector must feature in the upcoming industrial strategy?

• 19 Jun 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Compensation has been given to Severn Trent customers in Norton and Packmoor who had suffered discoloured water supplies, and to another resident who had sewage flooding their garden. While I welcome recent investment to upgrade the pipes in Smallthorne, Burslem and Tunstall, will the Secretary of State please outline how he will hold water bosses to account, so that residents finally see real improvements?

• 18 Jun 2025 · Post-industrial Towns · Hansard source

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  On the point of skills, there is a risk with non-mayoral areas that we do not get the same level of investment as goes into city mayoral areas. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is important that we see that money flow into all our communities across the United Kingdom?

• 18 Jun 2025 · Post-industrial Towns · Hansard source

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  rose—

• 12 Jun 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  In Burslem, a memorial to our Royal Doulton fallen was very sadly lost. I am proud to have joined a campaign led so brilliantly by Mike Lightfoot, ably supported by the former MP Joan Walley, St Modwen Homes and others, to reinstate the memorial, which will be unveiled on VJ Day this August. With Armed Forces Day approaching, will the Leader of the House join me in thanking Mike and the team for their commitment to ensuring that those who made the ultimate sacrifice will never be forgotten?

• 10 Jun 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Happy birthday, Mr Speaker. At the former Chatterley Whitfield colliery in my constituency of Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove, the council has launched an ambitious plan to go from black to green, creating a combined digital and eco park that includes an AI growth zone. Will the Secretary of State meet me—alongside my constituency neighbour and hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent South (Dr Gardner), who has championed this cause, and partners—to see for himself the potential of our coalfield communities?

• 4 Jun 2025 · Disadvantaged Communities · Hansard source

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  In Stoke-on-Trent, £11 is spent per young person per year on youth services. In inner London, the figure is £111. Meanwhile, Staffordshire police is one of a handful of forces that has fewer police on the beat than it did in 2010. Does my hon. Friend agree that when this Government look to invest, they must understand the starting point of our communities in order for any investment to have a meaningful impact?

• 4 Jun 2025 · Product Regulation and Metrology Bill [Lords] · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend and neighbour for giving way. She is eloquently outlining the real skills and talents of our people who make world-class ceramics. I echo her support for new clause 1, brought forward by my hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent Central (Gareth Snell). Recently I met the GMB union and workers who had sadly been made redundant at the iconic Moorcroft pottery in my constituency of Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove. Collectively, the 30 people in that room had more than 800 years of honing skills and expertise. Does my hon. Friend agree that we must do all we can to protect our pots, including backstamping our ceramic products, as outlined in new clause 1?

• 15 May 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  As a proud Stokey, I cannot wait to celebrate our city centenary on 5 June alongside my fellow residents. Will the Leader of the House join me in congratulating Councillor Jane Ashworth OBE, leader of Stoke-on-Trent City council, and our fantastic Lord Mayor Lyn Sharpe on their exceptional leadership in delivering a truly ambitious and inclusive programme of activities and events to mark this historic year?

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  The good people of Kidsgrove were promised significant improvements to their town as part of the Kidsgrove town deal. However, Simon Tagg, the Conservative leader of Newcastle-under-Lyme borough council, alongside the former Conservative Member of Parliament, over-promised and under-delivered. They knew they did not have the funds available. They should now say sorry to the people of Kidsgrove. Will the Leader of the House make time for a debate on openness and transparency in public funding?

• 22 Apr 2025 · Coalfields Regeneration Trust · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend and constituency neighbour is making an excellent case about the work of the Coalfields Regeneration Trust in Newcastle-under-Lyme. In Stoke-on-Trent North, in partnership with Stoke City Community Trust, the CRT delivers the “Game On” football project for 11 to 18-year-olds at Norton cricket club. Does my hon. Friend agree that the CRT plays a critical role in providing positive opportunities for young people, not only locally but across the country, and that it deserves Government support?

• 7 Apr 2025 · Road Maintenance · Hansard source

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  It is telling that in today’s debate we have five or six Staffordshire MPs debating this matter, and I wonder whether my hon. Friend would agree that that speaks to how let down residents and staff have been for far too long, and what happens under a Conservative-led local council.

• 7 Apr 2025 · Road Maintenance · Hansard source

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  When constituents talk to me about what matters most in their day-to-day lives, roads come up time and again. Whether travelling to work, doing the school run or getting to vital medical appointments, the state of our roads affects people’s quality of life. When those roads are full of potholes and defects, and they damage vehicles and put cyclists and bikers at risk, it sends a clear message to residents: you have been forgotten. That is exactly how too many people feel in Kidsgrove, Talke, Butt Lane, Newchapel, Harriseahead and Mow Cop. Today, I want to speak up for them. Last year, Staffordshire county council launched its highway recovery plan, but many of my constituents in Kidsgrove and the surrounding area still feel like they are waiting for it to start. Time and again, residents tell me, “We report defects and we chase them up, but nothing gets done.” Roads such as Gloucester Road, Newchapel Road and Kidsgrove Bank remain in a shocking condition. Vehicles are being damaged and people are quite rightly at their wits’ end. It feels as though Kidsgrove is being treated like the poor relative, left behind while other areas move forward. Roundabouts in places like Talke Pits by the old Normid look unloved and neglected. Some older and disabled people tell me that they fear leaving their own homes because of how unsafe the pavements are. For example, on Chester Road in Talke, residents have to walk in the road as a broken pavement has been fenced off by the Conservative-led council for over four years. Let me be clear: Conservative-led Staffordshire county council is failing Kidsgrove, and that is not okay. However, just over the border in Stoke-on-Trent, we have seen a very different story. Since Labour took control of the council two years ago, the city has delivered a marked step change in how we deal with potholes. The new administration made road repairs a clear priority, and the response speaks volumes. Back in 2023, about 7,500 defects were repaired. A year later, that figure rose to over 13,000: a 76% increase in just one year under a Labour council. When the council pledged to fix 6,000 defects in six months, it not only met the target but beat it, delivering 6,500 repairs in four months. That is the difference that a Labour council makes. Under the leadership of Jane Ashworth, Stoke-on-Trent city council has also increased its own capital investment in highways by more than 10% this past year, despite the financial pressures facing councils up and down the country, because it knows that the people of Stoke-on-Trent deserve better than the crumbling roads we inherited from the previous Conservative Administration. The Labour Government are now stepping up to help, fixing the mess left behind from those 14 years. Stoke-on-Trent will receive more than £9 million and Staffordshire county council more than £19 million in new Government transport funding. It is vital that we see the results of that in Kidsgrove. Let us not forget that, back in 2022, the people of Kidsgrove put their faith in Conservative county councillors, believing that they would be strong voices for our area. Sadly, those councillors appear to have gone AWOL, leaving the residents behind. Residents in Kidsgrove deserve better than that. They deserve to know that their voices are being heard and that the money is there to put things right. I welcome the extra funding for both Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, but this cannot be about money alone; it must also be about delivery. As we have seen in Stoke-on-Trent and across the country, where the Conservatives fail to deliver, Labour steps up to pick up the pieces and gets to work. I hope that the residents of Kidsgrove and the Talke and Red Street divisions will remember this as we approach the county council elections next month. I say to Ministers and the Secretary of State: keep backing innovative councils to get the basics right, including the Labour-led Stoke-on-Trent city council. Every journey matters, and Kidsgrove should never again be treated like the poor relative. As long as I am the MP for Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove, I will continue to stand up for my local residents.

• 7 Apr 2025 · Road Maintenance · Hansard source

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  Will my hon. Friend give way?

• 3 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. Residents from Newchapel and Butt Lane in my constituency of Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove recently contacted me about inconsiderate pavement parking in their areas. One resident who has significant health issues fears that ambulances will struggle to make it down her cul-de-sac, placing them at unacceptable risk. Will the Leader of the House make time for a debate on appropriate parking enforcement and resourcing requirements?

• 2 Apr 2025 · School-based Nursery Capital Grants · Hansard source

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  We started out with six Conservative Members, which we can divide by two to get the number now left on their Benches. Given their track record in this field, perhaps the rest have been put in detention for the rest of the day. I am so proud to see that Smallthorne primary academy in my constituency of Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove has been selected for a new school-based nursery. Does the Secretary of State agree with me that these nurseries are vital in places such as Smallthorne, not only for the childcare they provide, but for helping with school-readiness, closing the developmental gap early on and giving every single child the best start in life?

• 27 Mar 2025 · Prevention of Drug Deaths · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Murrison. I thank the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) for securing such an important debate. We have seen some of the worst outcomes on drug-related deaths in Europe. In England and Wales, there was an 85% increase in drug deaths between 2013 and 2023. Meanwhile, spending on drug and alcohol services decreased by around 40%. In Stoke-on-Trent, spending on treatment for drug misuse fell by 21% between 2019 and 2023. Preventive services must remain at the heart of our approach. As we have heard, an independent review reported that for every £1 spent on treatment, £4 is saved by reducing demands on health and justice services. In Stoke-on-Trent and Kidsgrove, residents have been concerned about young people inhaling butane gas, aerosols and nitrous oxide. However, there is currently no public measure of deaths associated with these substances in England and Wales. The absence of a public measure of mortality makes it difficult to understand the depth of this problem. Another key local concern is monkey dust, which is the colloquial name for synthetic cathinones. The use of monkey dust in our town centres and parks worries people, and cracking down on its use is critical to our safer streets mission. I want people like my mum and dad to feel safe when they are out and about. The community safety team at Stoke-on-Trent city council does excellent work in this field. It does regular walks of our towns and parks, alongside the police and drug service teams, offering support directly to those who need it. The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs has suggested a series of interventions to tackle the rising use of monkey dust. This includes expanding trauma-informed treatment for vulnerable people and encouraging stronger collaboration between housing, health and justice services. We know that drug dependency is linked to deprivation, and that in the most deprived areas, men are six times more likely and women almost five times more likely to die from drug use. In Stoke-on-Trent, our annual rate of drug deaths was 10.8 per 100,000 between 2020 and 2022, which is double the rate for England. In Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove, fantastic community organisations such as Walk Ministries and Expert Citizens work tirelessly to address the issues on the ground. I also thank the Stoke-on-Trent community drug and alcohol service for its critical work. Finally, it is a devastating fact that Stoke-on-Trent has one of the highest rates of infant mortality anywhere in the country, and we know that parental drug use is linked to sudden infant death syndrome, as reported by the national child mortality database. More must be done to address the impact of drug harms on children and families. I therefore close by asking the Minister to consider the merits of a cross-departmental strategy to address the impacts of parental drug use on infant health and mortality.

• 27 Mar 2025 · Hughes Report: First Anniversary · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Furniss. I warmly thank my hon. Friend the Member for Washington and Gateshead South (Mrs Hodgson) for securing this important debate. It is a national scandal that pelvic mesh has been used in thousands of operations, often without a thorough explanation of the side effects. It is also a national scandal that this matter is not at the forefront of public awareness and attention. As we have heard, at least 10,000 women were injured by pelvic mesh implants, and it could be many more. Their lives have been permanently altered. They now live with chronic pain, they find it difficult to work and live their lives well, and they suffer from a number of serious health conditions. These women have been badly let down. How can it be acceptable that so many women now live with debilitating pain? This scandal also speaks to a wider issue: the continuing neglect of women’s health. It is unacceptable that we still hear so many accounts of women feeling like their health concerns are not being adequately addressed. I place on record my thanks to all those in the room who have campaigned tirelessly on restoring justice to women, and a special thanks to my hon. Friend the Member for Washington and Gateshead South, who has raised this issue on so many occasions over such a long time. We must push for redress for the victims of this scandal. Sadly, like so many other hon. Members here, I must raise the case of a constituent who has told me she feels let down by failed medical advice when receiving a procedure. She told me that she was not told about the nature of the operation, and that she was not given consent forms. She was later told she had not needed the procedure at all. My constituent described her level of pain as “horrendous” and that “passing stool or water felt like passing glass.” That should never have happened to my constituent, nor to the thousands of women up and down the country. Those harmed deserve better. They deserve proper redress, and they deserve it now.

• 27 Mar 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  It is no surprise that under a Labour Government hospital waiting lists have fallen for five months in a row. At Royal Stoke university hospital, which brilliantly serves my constituents in Stoke-on-Trent, Kidsgrove and beyond, there are now 3,311 fewer patients waiting 18 weeks or longer to be seen compared with July last year. Will the Leader of the House make time for a debate on reducing hospital waiting lists, so that we can continue to sustain our progress in this area?

• 25 Mar 2025 · Access to NHS Dental Services · Hansard source

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  10. What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of access to NHS dental services.

• 25 Mar 2025 · Access to NHS Dental Services · Hansard source

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  More than one in three five-year-olds in Stoke-on-Trent has tooth decay. That is the worst rate in the west midlands and is 10% above the national average. Children in deprived areas, like much of my constituency of Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove, are twice as likely to suffer, and that is not acceptable. Can the Minister please outline what steps the Government will take to reduce regional inequalities in NHS dental access for children?