Josh Dean MP: speeches 2026

Speeches

• 14 Sept 2026 · Water Sector: Public Ownership · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve with you in the chair this afternoon, Sir Jeremy. I want to speak this afternoon about the River Stort, one of the globally significant chalk streams that runs right through my constituency. It is a place where families walk, where anglers spend their weekends, and where countless residents connect with nature. It delivers enormous social, recreational and environmental benefits for our community, but at the start of the month, raw sewage was again discharged into the Stort navigation in a spill that lasted more than eight hours, leaving dead fish and visible pollution in its wake. I have been requesting a meeting with Thames Water to discuss protecting the Stort since the start of the year, following hundreds of hours of sewage discharges. It has repeatedly failed to engage with that process, only agreeing to meet with me this week after I said that I would effectively turn up at one of its sewage treatment sites to demand an explanation. That is not good enough. We know that, whatever Thames Water says when I meet it later this week, the truth is that the privatised water industry is failing in its duty of care to our environment, and that privatisation has been a failure. There is simply no other way to put it. We were told that private ownership would drive investment, efficiency and better outcomes, but too often, we have seen the opposite. As others have said, water is not a luxury; it is an essential public service. We therefore need a system that puts the public interest before shareholder returns, investment before extraction, and environmental protection before corporate profit. To my mind, the only credible path forward is to call time on a failed system and move to a model of public ownership of our water industry. We should start by bringing Thames Water into special administration now. The pollution of our rivers and waterways cannot continue. For the sake of the River Stort, for communities across the country and for future generations, we must take this opportunity to choose a different path. I am grateful to the Minister for taking the time to meet me earlier this year regarding Thames Water and the River Stort. As I said, I will be meeting Thames Water later this week, so I would be very grateful if she set out in her response what message she would deliver to Thames Water were she in my position, and whether she would consider meeting me again to discuss these repeated failures.

• 10 Sept 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T3. One of my constituents contacted me about her mother, who had worked for the Department for Work and Pensions since the age of 18 but sadly died before Capita released the pension she had earned through a lifetime of public service. Given the distress caused to families like hers by such delays, what steps is the Minister taking to ensure that civil servants receive their pension payments promptly upon retirement?

• 1 Sept 2026 · Direction of Government · Hansard source

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  Over the bank holiday weekend, a treasured green space in Sawbridgeworth was decimated by building work without planning permission. Thanks to our community’s exceptional response, East Herts council was able to move quickly and secure an injunction, but across the country that is sadly the exception and not the rule. While this kind of unpermitted development is not a specific offence, residents in my community certainly felt that what started on Saturday was criminal. The Prime Minister has made it clear that he wants to tackle the thorny issues that make a real impact on people’s lives in communities like mine, so will he agree to meet me to discuss why we need to change the law to ensure that the police and local authorities have the right powers to stop this kind of unpermitted development in its tracks?

• 9 Jul 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  On Armed Forces Day a few weeks ago, our community came out not just to celebrate our armed forces personnel, but to support Ben Hardy. Ben, who is 11 years old, has had 10 operations on his eyes and is severely visually impaired, but that did not stop him putting on an outstanding sensory exhibition, bringing Dunkirk spirit to life for local people through sight, sound, smell and taste. Will the Leader of the House, and indeed the whole House, join me in congratulating Ben and thanking him for his outstanding contribution to our celebrations and all his hard work?

• 8 Jul 2026 · National Youth Strategy · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair this afternoon, Ms McVey. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Huddersfield (Harpreet Uppal) on securing this debate. I welcome this Labour Government’s national youth strategy, and how it recognises the importance of achieving good work and the emphasis that it places on trusted adults. Too often, those relationships have been seen as a soft offer—a nice to have—when in fact they are a key strategic asset in tackling youth unemployment. That is because today we risk having a lost generation. There are a million young people neither earning nor learning, with hundreds of thousands of them disconnected from traditional employment support and hidden from the system entirely. A growing evidence base suggests that trusted adult relationships, whether with youth workers, coaches, mentors or others can act as the connective tissue to the wider support that will help to address the barriers locking young people out of education, employment and training. They can transform a young person’s journey to employment through the continuity, advocacy and encouragement that many need to navigate a system that is often confusing and isolating. That consistent, person-centred support can be vital in identifying those hidden NEETs too. On Monday, to mark Youth Employment Week, I hosted a roundtable with the Youth Futures Foundation where we heard the powerful testimony of its youth ambassadors: Aarya, Elaina, Grace, Niamh, Serena, Sharna and Yusra. They talked about the impact that the presence, or absence, of a trusted adult had had on them. I am living proof that trusted adults can succeed where traditional provision falls short. When I dropped out of school feeling like the world had ended, it was a local youth worker called Russell who helped to rebuild my confidence and set me on a positive journey. I would not be here representing the home that I love without the support that he gave me. In a fragmented and often confusing landscape, trusted adults can act as a golden thread, bridging young people into the right support at the right time. They can also help to draw this Labour Government’s offers together, aligning work across employment, education, skills, health and youth policy, delivering the system change required to tackle the NEET challenge. Young Futures hubs can act as centres of excellence for relational practice, offering open access and co-ordinated support for young people across employment, mental health and crime prevention in every community. I would be grateful if the Minister could set out in her response how she is working across Government to deliver this manifesto commitment, and how she thinks we can strengthen and support the role of youth workers like Russell, and trusted adults more generally, across this important policy area.

• 30 Jun 2026 · Financial Inclusion: Young People · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That this House has considered financial inclusion for young people. It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Sir John. Today, young people are one of the groups most at risk of financial exclusion. Analysis by Fair4All Finance has identified 2 million unsteady starters in financially vulnerable circumstances across the UK. That includes 11% of financially vulnerable adults in Hertford and Stortford. Predominantly under 35, those young people are facing a combination of pressures: low financial resilience, higher housing costs, insecure work, rising insurance costs and a growing exposure to online financial risks. They experience poorer financial wellbeing as a result, closely linked to poor mental health, creating a vicious cycle that can undermine their educational attainment, employment prospects and economic participation. Financial inclusion is about more than access to banking; it is about access to affordable credit, insurance, savings, trusted financial guidance and opportunities to build a financial track record. I am pleased that the Government have recognised the importance of tackling financial exclusion in the financial inclusion strategy. If we can break down the barriers to financial inclusion, we can improve the lives of millions of people and unlock growth across the country. In this afternoon’s debate, I want to examine the barriers to financial inclusion that young adults face, and consider where Ministers could build on the financial inclusion strategy to prioritise practical interventions to support young people. Although a young person may pay rent regularly, meet mobile phone payments or have built responsible financial habits, they often lack sufficient credit history to access mainstream financial products on fair terms. We know that young adults are over-represented in the gig economy, temporary employment roles, part-time work and on zero-hours contracts. The insecure and variable income they receive is compounded by the high cost of living. It is harder for them to budget effectively or qualify for mainstream financial products, and they are more reliant on costly forms of borrowing as a result. As the cost of living crisis continues to eat into disposable incomes, young people struggle to build emergency or long-term savings. They typically have fewer savings than older adults, which leaves them acutely vulnerable to financial shocks: losing a job, an unexpected bill, increased rent or transport costs. In those circumstances, without emergency savings to draw on, many face a poverty premium, paying more in the long term through instalments because they cannot afford the cost of an up-front payment.

• 30 Jun 2026 · Financial Inclusion: Young People · Hansard source

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  I could not agree more about the importance of financial education for young people, which I will come to in my speech. We can already see how those overlapping pressures exacerbate a young person’s financial insecurity. Insurance is another area where they are left facing vulnerability to financial shocks that they are already ill-equipped to absorb. I was shocked to learn that 18 to 24-year-olds are significantly less likely to hold contents insurance, even though they are more likely to experience flood damage, escape of water, fire damage, burglary and theft. That is especially true when they live in rented accommodation, which many young adults do. I want to draw particular attention to the cost of motor insurance. Young people often make significant personal investments in driving lessons, to make it easier to get to work or education, only to find they cannot access affordable insurance when they pass their test. That directly impacts their ability to access work, training and other opportunities, especially in semi-rural communities such as the one that I represent, and it highlights how young people can face financial exclusion even when they are doing everything right. Too often, young people are entering adulthood without the tools, confidence or support networks that they need to navigate increasingly complex financial decisions.

• 30 Jun 2026 · Financial Inclusion: Young People · Hansard source

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  I will keep it brief, Sir John. To add to the trend, I will just share the fact that my first job was in a local coffee shop. It has been great to hear about rurality, the importance of car insurance, social media, fraud and student loans; I will not share just how high my student loan bill is, having checked recently. The importance of financial inclusion has really been brought to life, as have the challenges that young people face. I thank all Members who have contributed to this important debate, and I thank the Minister for her response. Every young person deserves to build a secure and sustainable financial future. I hope that the Treasury will continue to think ambitiously about how we can support them in doing so. Question put and agreed to. Resolved, That this House has considered financial inclusion for young people.

• 30 Jun 2026 · Financial Inclusion: Young People · Hansard source

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  I could not agree more about the importance of regulating access to financial information across social media and AI, which is an emerging challenge. Embedding financial education in school is so important, particularly ahead of the social media ban, which my hon. Friend mentions. Research has shown that young people have the lowest confidence in managing their money. The latest MoneyView survey from the Money and Pensions Service found that although 41% of adults lack confidence managing money, the figure rises to 63% for 18 to 24-year-olds. That is the highest for any age group. I welcome measures in the financial inclusion strategy to embed financial education in the primary school curriculum, helping children to develop healthy attitudes towards money at the earliest stage, but there is a need to go further. A report in 2025 by the London Foundation for Banking & Finance highlighted a significant gap in financial education provision. Financial capability programmes are concentrated in primary schools, the early years of secondary school and workplaces. There is comparatively little structured support for young people aged 16 to 24 as they transition to financial independence. That is one of the most financially vulnerable periods in a young person’s life. They have to navigate leaving school, entering work or going to university, and living independently for the first time. Particularly as students, young people are vulnerable to developing bad financial habits, experiencing a financial crisis or falling into debt. They are often having to balance their education with work. If a financial crisis hits, they face the prospect of sacrificing more of their education to pay down debt, with a potential impact on their future life chances. These significant moments in a young person’s life are when small mistakes and unexpected costs can quickly escalate. Early support in this transition period is critical to prevent longer-term financial problems. All this takes place in a rapidly evolving digital landscape. Young adults are adopting AI tools faster than older generations, which is providing them with opportunities for more accessible guidance, but leaving them at risk of exposure to inaccurate information, scams and poor or misleading financial recommendations. MoneySuperMarket’s latest Money Talks research with the Campaign Against Living Miserably found that 44% of 18 to 34-year-olds are turning to generative AI as a private space to express their money worries. That is almost half of young people who are being exposed to unregulated financial advice. Financial exclusion does not only increase economic inequality between those who have savings, access to financial education and good support networks, and those who do not; it also has a significant impact on young people’s mental health. Financial anxiety is no longer associated just with moments of crisis. For many, it has become a daily occurrence. Research from MoneySuperMarket, CALM and UM showed that one in two young adults is in debt, one in four young people has used a food bank in the past year and, more than social media, body image or relationships, money is the topic causing young people the most worry right now. Young adults are 77% more likely to have experienced suicidal thoughts because of issues with money or money worries than the wider adult population. One in 10 young adults with debt will have had suicidal thoughts in the past 12 months because of worries about making repayments. There is a profound link between financial difficulties and poor mental health. It is often cyclical, with financial stress leading to more mental health challenges, and poorer mental health making financial management harder. We must recognise that relationship and how financial insecurity and exclusion are leaving young people lacking agency in our society and without hope. Beyond arguments about economic growth and inactivity, this alone should spur us on to do better. What might solutions to the barriers I have set out look like, and where might we be able to go further? First, on credit visibility, small sum lending can support young people with thin or non-existent credit files to establish their financial identity, and therefore access affordable financial products. For example, Fair4All Finance is piloting small sum lending in partnership with Monzo, and I would be keen to hear the Minister’s reflections on the role of small sum lending in that area. What further action can the Government can take alongside regulators to support young people to establish a financial track record? Secondly, on insurance affordability the interim findings of the recent Milburn review highlighted the stark challenge of 1 million young people who are not in education, employment or training. I know the Government are committed to tackling the high number of NEETs, but I would be grateful if the Minister would set out what work is being undertaken with regulators and industry to improve access to affordable motor insurance for young drivers, and to tackle the prohibitive costs restricting their access to work and education, leaving them financially excluded. Modelling from WPI Economics has found that improvement in that area could increase the UK’s GDP by £369 million annually through increased employment and participation in the labour market—there is an economic opportunity here. Thirdly, will the Minister reflect on how the Government can expand financial education and support in that critical period of transition for 16 to 24-year-olds, and share what consideration she has given to the growing influence of AI on financial decision making? Finally, on financial wellbeing and mental health, will the Minister commit to working across Departments to ensure that financial resilience forms part of the Government’s wider approach to supporting young people’s mental health and wellbeing? If we want to grow the economy, tackle the NEET challenge and improve young people’s mental health and wellbeing, we must ensure that they are not excluded from the financial system that underpins modern life. Real financial inclusion must mean that every young person can build a secure and sustainable financial future. A young adult who can save, build a credit history, access affordable insurance and make informed decisions about their finances is more likely to succeed in work, education and life. They will feel that they have agency in our society, and they will have hope for the future.

• 29 Jun 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T5. The Child Maintenance Service has told one of my constituents that because the father of her children is claiming benefits, he can pay her only £6.73 a week, even though the CMS is aware that he has an additional hidden income of £97,000. Sadly, that is not an isolated case. Will the Minister set out, for my constituent, what the Government are doing to strengthen enforcement so that such cases can be treated as criminal matters?

• 29 Jun 2026 · Youth Hubs · Hansard source

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  16. What recent progress he has made on the expansion of youth hubs.

• 29 Jun 2026 · Youth Hubs · Hansard source

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  There is already much excitement in my community that East Herts will be home to one of the new youth hubs being rolled out by this Labour Government. I represent a semi-rural area where young people often have to make significant journeys across or even outside the constituency to access the services and support they need. Rurality can be a barrier to finding support and work, so will the Minister say a little more about how the Department’s model for youth hubs will account for it? Does a youth hub have to be in one location or can it be split across multiple venues if the interest is there?

• 16 Jun 2026 · Thames Water · Hansard source

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  My residents are rightly angry that Thames Water has discharged sewage into the River Stort, one of our rare and precious chalk streams, for hundreds of hours. I have raised the issue in this House before, and Thames Water told me that its improvement plan will not be in place until 2028. That is clearly not good enough. Does the Secretary of State agree that this is the latest in a litany of failures by Thames Water? What assurances will she give my constituents that she will ensure that the need to protect our precious chalk streams will be a priority future consideration in the future of Thames Water?

• 15 Jun 2026 · Social Media Ban for Under-16s · Hansard source

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  A decade ago, I marched with other young people to Parliament Square calling for votes at 16 to be introduced after the Brexit referendum, and I am proud that this Labour Government are doing that. However, how will we ensure that young people are well informed when they cast their first ballot, given that they are digital natives and get a lot of their information online?

• 11 Jun 2026 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I was delighted when the Labour Government supported Church Street GP surgery in Bishop’s Stortford with the funding for much-needed improvements last year. I recently had the opportunity to visit the surgery and see at first hand how its modern improvements are delivering for patients and supporting staff to expand capacity. We know that bricks and mortar are not the sum total of our health service; it is the people on the ground who make it happen. Will the Leader of the House join me in thanking Dr Sian Stanley, Leigh Evans, Sarah Carter and everyone at Church Street not only for delivering this project, but for keeping the surgery open for more than 16,000 patients while work was ongoing?

• 11 Jun 2026 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Residents in Hertford and Stortford tell me that their bus services are too often irregular or delayed, causing unnecessary disruption and stress. I welcome the £19.5 million allocated to Hertfordshire county council through the local authority bus grant last year, but will the Minister say a bit more about how we will work with the Lib Dem administration to ensure that the money is used effectively, and about what this Labour Government are doing to improve bus services in semi-rural communities such as mine?

• 8 Jun 2026 · Water Companies · Hansard source

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  The River Stort is one of our rare and precious local chalk streams, and my residents were rightly furious when they discovered that Thames Water has been pumping sewage into it for hundreds of hours. When I asked Thames Water what it intended to do to remedy the situation, it told me that it had an improvement plan in place and it would not be ready until 2028 at the earliest. That is not good enough. My residents will not stand for that, and neither will I. Can the Minister say a little more about what we can do to hold these water companies to account, to speed up the progress that they are making, and to ensure that we protect our rare chalk streams specifically?

• 8 Jun 2026 · Digital Safety: Children · Hansard source

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  The vast majority of Members in this place had the benefit of growing up in a world without social media, and with social media, but today’s young people have not had that benefit. They have grown up with their lives intimately intertwined with the digital world, and in lockdown they were pushed even deeper online without being given a say. Whatever we do next, we must bring young people with us. Beyond the consultation, what will the Department do to meaningfully engage with young people in this area of policy, so that we can build a digital world that is safe for young people with young people?

• 2 Jun 2026 · Milburn Review: Interim Report · Hansard source

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  We must not forget that hundreds of thousands of NEET young people are disconnected from traditional employment support, and hidden from the system entirely as a result. With youth workers and trusted adult relationships offering the missing link to help identify and bridge those young people into support, how will we put those relationships at the heart of the systems change that is needed to meet that challenge?

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

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  I share my residents’ anger that a Thames Water site has reportedly released over 900 hours of sewage into the River Stort, one of our precious local chalk streams, since the start of the year. I have written to Thames Water and the Environment Agency to raise my community’s concerns about the lack of urgency in tackling sewage discharge. Will the Leader of the House join me in calling on Thames Water to take urgent action to protect our precious local chalk streams, and will he help to facilitate a meeting with the relevant Minister to discuss this case in more detail?

• 17 Mar 2026 · Youth Unemployment · Hansard source

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  I really welcome this Government’s investment in our young people’s futures, but almost half of NEET young people are disconnected from the benefit system and traditional support. I know from my experience of leaving school at 16 just how much of a difference youth workers and trusted adults can make in giving those hidden young people a bridge into support. Can the Secretary of State say a little more about the role that he sees trusted adults playing in supporting young people into work, and reflect on the work of the pilots and the youth trailblazer areas in looking at the co-location of youth services and employment support?

• 11 Mar 2026 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  Q5. Too often, I hear from families of children with special educational needs and disabilities in Hertford and Stortford whose children have been left out of education for months or even years because they cannot get a school place that meets their needs within a reasonable distance. I am campaigning for more investment in the bricks and mortar SEND provision that semi-rural communities like ours need, so that families can access support early and easily and their children can thrive in education. Will the Prime Minister back my campaign to expand SEND provision in Hertford and Stortford, and will he arrange a meeting with the relevant Minister to discuss that in more detail?

• 9 Mar 2026 · Support for NEET Young People · Hansard source

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  A young person with undiagnosed attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is more likely not to be in education, employment or training. That is driven by a lack of recognition, treatment and tailored support. The expert-led NHS ADHD taskforce estimates that the cost to the UK economy of unsupported ADHD is £17 billion each year, but, with the right support, young people with ADHD can thrive. Will the Secretary of State set out how the Department is working across Government, including through the Milburn review, to ensure that young people with ADHD can access the support they need to thrive in work and reach their potential?

• 9 Mar 2026 · Support for NEET Young People · Hansard source

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  13. What steps he is taking to support young people into employment, education or training.

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

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  Morrisons has resigned from managing the Thorley Park post office, putting the future of an important local centre at risk. I have joined with a cross-party group of local councillors to write to the local Sainsbury’s and encourage it to host the branch, as the Post Office can only keep the branch open if local retailers come forward to take it on. Will the Leader of the House join me in encouraging Sainsbury’s, local retailers and entrepreneurs to take on this important local service?