Jim Dickson MP: speeches 2026

Speeches

• 16 Mar 2026 · GP Contract · Hansard source

  More

  I warmly welcome the Government’s reforms, which will ensure same-day access for GPs in urgent cases and will also make it easier to get an appointment online, finally moving towards ending the 8 am scramble. I recently visited Swanscombe health centre, where the brilliant team is under significant pressure because of the large number of new families moving to the area, particularly neighbouring Ebbsfleet, which has seen 5,000 very welcome new homes built so far. Will the Minister visit Swanscombe with me to see the work that the practice is doing and look at how we can get GP services designed into developments much earlier in the process in areas such as Ebbsfleet Garden City?

• 12 Mar 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

  More

  It has been a really big step forward to see the statutory levy on gambling operators up and running since April last year, with the money raised from it ringfenced for much-needed gambling-related harms research, prevention and treatment. However, with only three weeks until the new financial year, I am concerned that funding allocations have not yet been announced, leaving vital organisations such as GamCare, Gordon Moody and many others uncertain of their future. Will the Leader of the House pass on my concerns to the relevant Health Minister and ask that they update the House on this issue as soon as possible?

• 9 Mar 2026 · Middle East: Economic Update · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the Chancellor for her statement. It is vital for residents in Dartford and across the country that they know the Government have their back when it comes to fuel bills going forward. Does she agree that the economic stability she set out last week in the spring statement means that the economy and consumers are much less vulnerable to the price shocks coming from the middle east than they otherwise would have been?

• 5 Mar 2026 · Consular Assistance · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the Minister for his statement and for all the work that he and the Government are doing to help UK citizens get home if they wish to. One of my constituents is in Dubai with friends. She is a type 1 diabetic but is running out of insulin and is anxious to return home. Can he offer any guidance on whether she might be prioritised for a flight home, and on what medical support she can access in the interim? Will the Minister also offer advice to other constituents of mine, including Krystal Whyment, who are unable to leave Dubai because flights have been cancelled on more than one occasion? They are finding it difficult to access support when they contact the UK consulate in Dubai, because of the heavy workload that the consulate is clearly experiencing.

• 5 Mar 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

  More

  Dartford’s brilliant Wentworth primary school—whose notable former pupils include the wonderful Sir Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, as well as UK gold medal-winning sprinter Adam Gemili—turns 75 next month. Will the Leader of the House join me in wishing the school, the headteacher Mr Pollock and its wonderful staff, governors and pupils a very happy birthday?

• 2 Mar 2026 · Middle East · Hansard source

  More

  May I express my support for the Government’s handling of the events this weekend? I am grateful for the Prime Minister’s clarity today that international law is paramount and that priority is being given to the safety of UK citizens. Does he agree with me, however, that this will end only when Iran, the US and allies get around the table and talk about nuclear de-escalation, and when Iran abandons its nuclear ambitions? Will the Prime Minister tell us what conversations he has had with allies to ensure that happens?

• 4 Feb 2026 · Civil Service Pension Scheme: Administration · Hansard source

  More

  I thank my hon. Friend for securing this debate. We can see by the numbers here how serious it is. I have heard from a number of constituents, as she has, in the situation she describes. Heartbreakingly, one constituent, Collette Reeves, retired at the end of last year to care for her husband who has been diagnosed with dementia, and she is now struggling to pay her bills because of the delays. Despite repeated attempts to get answers, she has got nowhere in accessing her pension or getting support from the interim emergency fund. Does my hon. Friend agree with me that the performance of Capita since it took over falls woefully short of what we should expect and that it is crucial for our constituents to get clarity on how to access the interim fund as a matter of emergency?

• 3 Feb 2026 · Transport in the South-East · Hansard source

  More

  I pay tribute to the hon. Member for securing the debate and for the great speech she is making. She mentioned the role of buses. There tends to be an assumption made by people outside the south-east that we all have bus networks similar to those in London, but they would not have to go very far from London—to my constituency of Dartford, for instance—to find that the bus services become extremely limited, yet bus services can be such a driver of a better quality of life for people in getting to education and work or accessing other opportunities. Does the hon. Member agree that the extra money that the Government have given to county councils—in my instance, Kent county council has been given an extra £42 million to spend in the coming year on improved bus services—must be spent to provide better connectivity for all our residents, irrespective of whether they are in Kent, Sussex, Hampshire or other parts of the south-east?

• 2 Feb 2026 · Tolled Crossings and Regional Connectivity · Hansard source

  More

  I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for South East Cornwall (Anna Gelderd) on her great speech and on securing this debate. On the Government’s spend on transport infrastructure, those present and the Minister may know that I remain a very strong supporter of the lower Thames crossing project, which will, when built, hugely reduce congestion at the Dartford crossing and make the quality of life and the air quality for my constituents in Dartford massively better. I thank the Minister and her team for the progress made on that project. We expect spades to be in the ground this year, which is wonderful. Does the Minister agree, however, that when the lower Thames crossing is built, and we have it and the Dartford crossing over the Thames east of London, it will be particularly important that the tolls for both crossings are equalised so that there is no financial incentive to use one rather than the other, and traffic can flow freely through both across the Thames?

• 28 Jan 2026 · Youth Unemployment · Hansard source

  More

  In my constituency and across Kent we are pleased to be one of the trailblazer areas for the Connect to Work programme, which started under this Government, not the last Government. It gives people personalised support to stay in work and to get jobs in the first place, ensuring that they have a long-term future in the workplace. Is that not the sort of serious intervention we need to deal with unemployment among young people?

• 27 Jan 2026 · Business Rates · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the Minister for his statement. The pubs in my constituency, from the Growler Stop and Ivy Leaf in Dartford to the Bull in Stone and the Spring River in Ebbsfleet, are the heart of our community. Does the Minister agree that it is crucial that we find ways to protect them as places for people to come together and build communities, and that the package he has announced today—with its 15% reduction on the revalued bill and protection for the next three years—makes a big contribution to that goal?

• 27 Jan 2026 · Commonhold and Leasehold Reform · Hansard source

  More

  I welcome the statement and the Minister’s great work. Leaseholders and freeholders across my constituency, in places like Greenhithe, Ebbsfleet and Stone, will hugely welcome the cap on ground rents and the rest of the detail on the draft Bill. May I impress on the Minister the need for us to go further on supporting those who live on unadopted or freehold estates, and to address poor practices by managing agents?

• 26 Jan 2026 · Police Reform White Paper · Hansard source

  More

  Communities in Kent are pleased to see that funding for police next year will be 20% higher than in the final year of the previous Government, with a target for 43 new neighbourhood police officers across the county to police our streets and rebuild community policing after years of neglect. Does the Home Secretary agree it is crucial that the White Paper rebuilds trust between communities and police not just in Kent but across the country, so that the public can have confidence that a police person will be there when they need them?

• 22 Jan 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

  More

  T8. Residents in Dartford regularly tell me that they want every pound of public spending used to best effect. Will the Minister update the House on the progress that is being made on cracking down on fraudsters and ensuring that UK taxpayers get back the money they are owed?

• 19 Jan 2026 · Sale of Fireworks · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the hon. Gentleman for his great speech and for the excellent way in which he is taking all the interventions. As someone who lives with a cat—I hesitate to say that I own one; it usually seems the other way round—I can see for myself, and from the emails I have had from Dartford residents concerned about their pets, that the disturbance caused by loud fireworks is hugely traumatising for them. Does he agree that we need not only to reduce the maximum noise level for consumer fireworks, as he has already said, but to seek further restrictions on the dates when fireworks can be purchased from both licensed and unlicensed sellers?

• 19 Jan 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

  More

  T8. As in many communities across the country, in Dartford there is a real need to improve access to places and spaces where people, especially children, can be physically active, including through play and sport. What plans are there to increase the use of facilities on school sites, including through enrichment and increased community access? What role can the forthcoming school sport partnership networks play?

• 15 Jan 2026 · Gambling Harms: Children and Young People · Hansard source

  More

  My hon. Friend raises an extremely tragic case, which I will deal with later in my speech. She also makes that link between sport, gambling and addiction, which is so pernicious, and which we need to see action on to ensure that we create an environment in which people are prevented from becoming addicted, rather than being encouraged. As my hon. Friend rightly says, the front-of-shirt ban will not be nearly enough on its own; it is far from the end of the story. Gambling advertising, including perimeter TV and social media, continues to proliferate in sport. There are also the other parts of the shirt; this is a front-of-shirt ban on advertising, so stand by for lots more gambling company adverts on sleeves and other parts of the shirt from next season. I have spoken before of my concerns about how the coroner service responds to gambling-related suicides. I remain of the view that the Government should ensure that the causes of preventable deaths, including ones related to gambling, are properly examined and addressed to prevent future deaths, with the evidence submitted by families properly considered. As my hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Laura Kyrke-Smith) mentioned, just this week the inquest concluded into the death of Ollie Long, a football fan who took his own life after struggling with addiction for eight years, starting as a young person in his 20s. In his tragic case, there was a particular concern that, despite being registered with GamStop, which locked him out of the mainstream gambling industry, he was—likely through online advertising—able to place bets via online casinos based abroad. Although the coroner would not, as the family wished, include gambling as a cause of death, she has written to the Government to raise her concerns about the risks posed by illegal gambling sites, which is an issue Ministers are familiar with. As we support and treat adults who suffer from gambling harms and we try to reduce the incentives in our wider environment to gamble, we have an opportunity to ensure that we do not allow this generation of young people to turn into the next generation of gambling addicts, with disastrous consequences for their life chances. Let us take that opportunity.

• 15 Jan 2026 · Gambling Harms: Children and Young People · Hansard source

  More

  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Lewell. I congratulate my hon. Friend—and fellow Kent MP—the Member for Sittingbourne and Sheppey (Kevin McKenna) on securing the debate and on his extremely insightful speech. He showed his background as a clinician, but also his concern for his constituents. As others have said, this is indeed a very timely debate. The latest figures on young people and gambling, published in November by the Gambling Commission, should be a concern to us all. Some 49% of 11 to 17-year-olds had experienced gambling in the previous 12 months. Even more worryingly, 30% of 11 to 17-year-olds had spent their own money on gambling in the previous 12 months. I understand from GamCare, the charity that runs the national gambling helpline, that in the last year callers to that helpline from my constituency of Dartford identified all sorts of problems—including financial difficulties, anxiety, stress and depression—as the personal impacts of their gambling. GamCare also highlighted to me that among parents who are already gamblers at risk of harm, almost half have bet with their children and 38% have, for example, bought them a scratchcard. That might be innocent enough in itself, but it is a gateway activity likely to lead to problem gambling as those young people move into gaming and sports. Half of these parents report that they think their children are likely to gamble in the future, including by betting on sports and playing casino games when they are old enough. That is concerning when up to 2.2 million children are growing up in households where an adult is experiencing gambling harms. I am, however, heartened by some of the steps the Government are taking across the piece, such as ensuring that the gambling levy money is spent on research and treatment and targets the communities and people most at risk, and the Chancellor’s announcement in the Budget that we are seeking to raise taxes on the most harmful forms of gambling. I am proud to be a member of the Treasury Committee, which wrote a report recommending that to the Chancellor prior to the Budget. One area the Government should look at—the Minister might address this when he sums up—is how we reduce the exposure of young people to gambling-related advertising. That was highlighted by my hon. Friend the Member for Halesowen (Alex Ballinger), who has done so much work in this area. Four in five young people have seen or heard adverts or promotions for gambling through online or offline sources. As a football fan, I see the level of gambling marketing in sport all the time. I welcome the voluntary front-of-shirt ban the Premier League is bringing in from the start of next season. My club, Crystal Palace, is in need of a new sponsor, not just because of the disaster of last Saturday, but because its current sponsor is a gambling company.

• 15 Jan 2026 · Youth Activities · Hansard source

  More

  9. What steps her Department is taking to improve access to youth activities for young people.

• 15 Jan 2026 · Youth Activities · Hansard source

  More

  In Swanscombe and in much of my constituency, less than 50% of young people are physically active. That is only slightly lower than the national average, which is highly alarming. Under the previous Government, community sports facilities such as Swanscombe Pavilion in my constituency crumbled, with no resources to bring them back to life, reducing the available space for young people to be active. That is why I am particularly pleased to hear about the £400 million, which has been mentioned today, that the Government committed to grassroots sport facilities last June. Will the Minister provide an update on how that vital funding will be allocated, and will she agree to meet me to discuss this further?

• 13 Jan 2026 · Finance (No. 2) Bill · Hansard source

  More

  I thank the Minister for giving way during an excellent speech introducing what I think is an extremely positive change. Like many Members, I have campaigned for some years to ensure that the most harmful and addictive forms of gambling attract tax that is commensurate with those harms, so I welcome this measure, as I am sure do others who have campaigned on this issue. As a member of the Treasury Committee, which recommended this change in a report just before the Budget, I am very glad to see it. Will the Minister confirm that some of the revenue raised will be used to help the Government reach their objective of lifting half a million children out of poverty, and say how that relationship works? The Treasury clearly does not want to see a hypothecation of that sum, so how does the connection between the money raised by the tax and the lifting of children out of poverty work?

• 12 Jan 2026 · Call for General Election · Hansard source

  More

  I am still responding to the last intervention. Dartford is lucky that North Kent college is the recipient of one of 10 national centre of excellence awards for construction. Dartford will be the south-east centre, and that will allow young people to get into jobs as infrastructure spending takes place in the constituency.

• 12 Jan 2026 · Call for General Election · Hansard source

  More

  The residents in Dartford who voted for me wanted to see us deliver the things that I am talking about: infrastructure to improve their roads, a better NHS, additions to their local hospital and police on the streets. They are appreciating that. We are rebuilding the relationship between the police in Dartford and local residents. I have been particularly pleased to meet officers across Dartford and the villages over the past 18 months, and I put on record my thanks for all they do. We have much more to do, particularly to ensure that police have the powers they need to tackle the troubling trend, which I have discovered in my constituency and across Kent more broadly, of catapults being used to target wildlife and people. I am gladdened by the response from Ministers at the Home Office and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which demonstrates again that this is a Government who listen.

• 12 Jan 2026 · Call for General Election · Hansard source

  More

  I say: look at the additional spending going into Dartford to create jobs, and look at the Connect to Work project, set up by the Department for Work and Pensions, which is helping young people who are a long way from the labour market into good, well-paid jobs. We clearly have much more to do to ensure that we have the police we need in Dartford, but I am confident that people in Dartford feel safer and will continue to feel safer, as long as we do not have a general election that sees those changes lost. Finally—this is something that I am personally proud of—hon. Members may know that I was contacted by the family of Simone White, who tragically died of methanol poisoning in Laos late last year. It has been an honour to work with Simone’s family and the families of other victims of methanol poisoning on greater awareness of the risks. This is why it is important that we have a Government who listen. I am pleased that, as a result of the families’ campaigning work, the curriculum is being changed to add the risk of poisoning from methanol abroad to teaching about the hazards people can encounter when travelling, and that the Foreign Office has worked with the families to update its advice. Those changes are a testament to the courage and campaigning of the victims’ families, as well as to a Government who listen. Since the election, we have made progress on crucial issues, with more to come in the years ahead. I look forward to working with Dartford residents, our vibrant community groups, our faith groups and our businesses to keep driving positive changes in our area. That is what I say to people in Dartford who signed the petition.

• 12 Jan 2026 · Call for General Election · Hansard source

  More

  Not very many. Actually, Dartford is in receipt of significant additional infrastructure spending, which is putting people into work. An example of how young people are going to be in work in Dartford in the future—