Steve Darling MP: speeches 2025

Speeches

• 4 Nov 2025 · Welfare Spending · Hansard source

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  It is important that the House, first of all, reflects on where the Conservatives left our community when they left power. We should reflect on the fact that the number of people who are economically inactive has gone up from 2.1 million in 2019 to 2.8 million. The fact that the bill for incapacity benefits has gone up from £34 billion to £51 billion is quite shocking. It is interesting that the Conservatives feel able to share their pearls of wisdom with the Chamber after leaving the world in such a sorry state. The Conservatives have climbed into the gutter to produce the proposals before us this evening; Disraeli and Peel must be turning in their graves. There are some real challenges. We need a true culture change, both in the benefit system and in the employment world, to help people get into work. That culture change should involve us taking a trauma-informed approach, in the DWP, in our civil service and in our society, so that we can help people who can work into work. I would also like to reflect on the sorry state in which the Conservatives left our NHS after they starved it of cash and failed to invest in it for many years. It is a great pity that so many residents came to me in my first year as MP for Torbay to tell me that they were unable to have the operations they required, due to the Conservatives’ lack of investment over many years. They bled money out of the capital system to cover the costs of revenue. That is utterly shameful. Torbay hospital continues to crumble and, sadly, under the new Labour Government, we still see £250 million of in-year cuts to our NHS services. While the Conservatives undermine those with mental health challenges, Devon partnership NHS trust is set for £21 million in cuts.

• 30 Oct 2025 · Infected Blood Compensation Scheme · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the Minister on making real progress on this matter, after many years of delays. I recently met Jean Hill and her daughters. She has been campaigning on this issue for 30 years. Sadly, her husband died in 2004 at the age of 48; his brother died at 25; and a nephew died in more recent years. What assurance can the Minister give me—and Jean—that payments to deceased estates will be expedited as a matter of urgency, and what additional resources will be put in place to achieve that?

• 29 Oct 2025 · International Baccalaureate: Funding in State Schools · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Roger. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Didcot and Wantage (Olly Glover) on obtaining this debate. I myself applied for a debate on this subject, so I am pleased to be here today. Torquay boys’ grammar school in my constituency has discharged the pleasure of teaching the international baccalaureate for the last 16 years. It results in an influx into the school of young women, as well as youngsters from across the south-west and even Europe, who want to study the incredible, enhancing baccalaureate. My own son participated in the international baccalaureate. He volunteered in a care home and, a little over 10 years later, he is now a registrar at Torbay hospital and about to enter into a programme to become a consultant with an interest in care for the elderly. That demonstrates how the IB drives positive change. I am aware from universities that the IB is very often—just as in my son’s case—seen as a good standard for gaining entrance to medical schools. I had a conversation with the head of Torquay boys’ grammar school, who said that the international baccalaureate offers those youngsters who develop later in sixth form greater opportunity to flourish more they would have in an A-level setting. I hope that the Minister reflects on how the international baccalaureate truly helps social mobility—something that I would hope a Labour Government would want to propagate rather than negate. Colleagues from across the Chamber have highlighted the short notice of the change to funding. My hon. Friend the Member for South Devon (Caroline Voaden) rightly mentioned how it will impact the ability to offer languages, which will affect schools like Torquay boys’ grammar. I am sure that will be echoed across the country. The reality is that the £5 million in question is 0.004% of the education budget—a drop in the ocean. I say to the Minister: please, think again. The IB is about enriching our society and offering greater social mobility. Surely, that is what this Government should be all about.

• 29 Oct 2025 · International Baccalaureate: Funding in State Schools · Hansard source

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  My two sons both went to Torquay boys’ grammar school. One undertook the international baccalaureate. The other went down the A-level route and got three A*s. Universities do not like students taking more than three A-levels. We often joke with him that perhaps he should have stretched himself and undertaken the international baccalaureate. What would the Minister’s advice be?

• 29 Oct 2025 · Gaza and Hamas · Hansard source

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  The Minister has already acknowledged that it is olive harvest season in the west bank—a harvest that supports approximately 100,000 farming Palestinians—yet we have seen more than 150 attacks by settlers against those farmers. How are the Government holding the Israeli Government to account to stop those settlers acting with impunity?

• 29 Oct 2025 · European Convention on Human Rights (Withdrawal) · Hansard source

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  Putin’s patsy!

• 28 Oct 2025 · World Stroke Day · Hansard source

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  In Torbay, in Devon, we have the third highest prevalence of strokes in the United Kingdom, and yet, within the last 12 months, we have seen cuts to support for the local stroke association. That has left people who are suffering from strokes feeling isolated and abandoned. Does my hon. Friend agree that we need to see more investment at the grassroots to support sufferers of strokes?

• 27 Oct 2025 · Child Poverty · Hansard source

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  I note that last year the new Secretary of State for Work and Pensions said that it is open to debate as to whether the two-child limit is harmful. I note also that this policy has been the most impactful in driving children—more than 730,000 of them—into poverty. Will the Minister acknowledge that the two-child limit is harmful and work with Treasury colleagues to overturn it?

• 27 Oct 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  The Government have made a promise that those transferring from legacy benefits to universal credit will find themselves no worse off, yet Liberal Democrat colleagues from all over the country are finding that people are worse off. Will the Minister share evidence of how the Government are supporting the most vulnerable where they find themselves worse off?

• 23 Oct 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T10. I have recently been contacted by International House Torquay, a language school, which has welcomed the opportunity for German foreign students to use ID cards to travel as a group. Can the Minister advise what further opportunities there will be for other European countries such as Switzerland, Italy and Spain to take advantage of a similar scheme?

• 23 Oct 2025 · Fishing and Coastal Growth Fund · Hansard source

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  Brixham has the highest-value catch in England, yet it is in Torbay, which is the most deprived local authority in the south-west of England. How will local levels of deprivation colour the allocation of funding for England?

• 21 Oct 2025 · Ending Homelessness · Hansard source

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  Thank you for chairing this debate, Mr Efford, and I congratulate the hon. Members for Liverpool Wavertree (Paula Barker) and for Harrow East (Bob Blackman) on securing it. Homelessness—what we see on the streets across the United Kingdom—is just the tip of the iceberg of the crisis in our housing system. For more than 30 years, I have campaigned on this issue while serving my local community. One of the sad pleasures is occasionally going out with our outreach team in Torbay and knowing that there is somebody going up to a person sleeping in a doorway, saying to them, “Hello, I’m from Torbay council. Would you like something to eat or drink, and how can we help?” That is extremely humbling, and I pay tribute to those members of staff. Clearly, we have seen a massive reduction in our social rented housing stock—from 34% of housing stock when Thatcher came into power to just 17% now. In Torbay, only 7% of housing stock is social rented. The private sector has stepped up, but that leaves people with massive bills to pay for what is sometimes not the best housing. I pay tribute to some of those who pick up the pieces of this challenge: Kath from PATH, an excellent charity; Rev. Sam Leach and his team at St Mags who do incredible work supporting our street homeless; and also the Unleashed theatre, which won the King’s award for voluntary service, supporting homeless people across Torbay. Massive cuts to the Supporting People budget were at the root of those challenges, and I am afraid to say that under the Labour Government, we have a quarter of a billion pounds of cuts to our NHS, our mental health service has lost £21 million, and the homeless and rough sleepers team in Torbay is being ripped out. Will the Minister intervene with the Devon Partnership NHS trust over the savage cuts that are leaving some of the most vulnerable people even more on the edges of our society in Torbay?

• 21 Oct 2025 · New Hospital Programme · Hansard source

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  5. What progress his Department has made on the implementation of the new hospital programme.

• 21 Oct 2025 · New Hospital Programme · Hansard source

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  The Conservatives still have not apologised for the appalling state that they left our NHS in. Torbay hospital is the third oldest hospital in the United Kingdom. It has a tower block wreathed in scaffolding to stop bits of it falling off rather than it being under repair, and it has sewage leaks throughout. Sadly, it needs significant investment, which has been kicked into the long grass. A senior manager described the situation only this week as “dire”. Will the Minister meet me and hospital representatives to explore how we can achieve the investment to turn this round?

• 20 Oct 2025 · Post-16 Education and Skills Strategy · Hansard source

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  Torquay Boys’ grammar school has long delivered the international baccalaureate. My own eldest son, George, has benefited from that and, under the scheme, has volunteered in a care home. He is now on the cusp of becoming a registrar for care of the elderly. During my meeting with the head of Torquay Boys’ last Friday, he expressed particular concern about the impact of the lack of social mobility and the impact on the ability to deliver languages. Will the Secretary of State think again about these cuts to the international baccalaureate?

• 15 Oct 2025 · Pride in Place · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the Minister on her appointment and welcome the core principle that she described: giving our communities the power to decide how to put money to best use. I am delighted that Torbay has been awarded two tranches of pride in place funding. However, it is a perverse badge of honour, because it demonstrates that we are the most deprived local authority in the south-west of England, the Conservatives having short-changed us. Another challenge in Torbay is the fact that social rented homes account for only 7% of our housing. Will the Minister reflect on how the whole Government can try to meet the desperate need for social housing in Torbay, which has less than half the national average?

• 14 Oct 2025 · Mental Health Bill [Lords] · Hansard source

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  On funding, the Devon partnership NHS trust looks after people with mental health challenges in the Torbay community, where levels of depths of despair are particularly high. The trust is facing a £21 million cut, so does my hon. Friend agree that changes will be irrelevant if we do not have adequate funding?

• 13 Oct 2025 · Digital ID · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the Secretary of State on her new position. I am mindful of her previous position, where she masterminded the personal independence payment reforms, so with her proposals before us today I am concerned that she is fast becoming the Minister for lost causes. In my constituency, we have an awful lot of people who are digitally excluded; it is really sobering. Will she please give us some clear examples of how people will be helped? I know of dozens and dozens of people who are against the proposal in principle, but what about those who will potentially be excluded?

• 16 Sept 2025 · Police: Professional Standards · Hansard source

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  Professional standards set the tone and the culture for the whole organisation. I pay tribute to Roy Linden, who is the commander of South Devon police, the old F division. There is a significant challenge relating to the lack of knowledge within the police. There are lots of new officers, and if we do not have the professional standards holding people to account, police often fall short of the standards that many of us would expect of them.

• 16 Sept 2025 · Police: Professional Standards · Hansard source

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  I alluded to the fact that we have sadly lost an awful lot of police officers with deep knowledge, and many of our police officers are relatively new to the position. Will the Minister reflect on how we can build that long-term knowledge back into the police force, because that can drive better standards where services are being provided, rather than looking for where things have already fallen over?

• 16 Sept 2025 · Sentencing Bill · Hansard source

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  The police in Torbay tell me that in Paignton and Torquay town centres a number of habitual offenders see a call back to prison as just a professional risk. Does my hon. Friend agree that after years of a lack of investment by the Conservatives, we need to see investment in rehabilitation to help keep those individuals on the straight and narrow?

• 11 Sept 2025 · Pension Schemes Bill (Eighth sitting) · Hansard source

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  [ Interruption. ] I am not quite used to getting interrupted by thunder. Perhaps I should get used to it, with Jennie winning Westminster Dog of the Year, or at least the popular vote. Clearly, it was rigged—I jest. On a more serious note, we are looking at a cohort of pensioners, the pre-’97 pensioners, who have been left behind without indexation. We heard moving evidence from two gentlemen who shared the challenges that many of those pensioners face, living in higher levels of poverty because of the failure to index. Our proposal is to ensure that there is a responsibility to explore the possibility of amending the fiduciary duties—something I was not even aware of until I started exploring the Bill—to support the possibility of indexation. I am aware that a more prescriptive new clause has also been tabled. As Liberal Democrats, we sympathise with the aims, but we feel that we need to have confidence that the system has the capacity to pay out. Our proposal is a steady hand on the tiller approach. It is about sense checking and ensuring that there is an ability to support the appropriate levels of indexation. I hope that the Minister will look kindly upon the proposal, as it is the more level-headed approach, with all due respect to Plaid and the SNP.

• 11 Sept 2025 · Pension Schemes Bill (Eighth sitting) · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time. I am afraid I have a difficulty, Ms Lewell: I am appearing soon in a Westminster Hall debate as a spokesperson, so I will have to go part-way through this debate—accept my sincere apologies for that. New clause 7 is the beginning of a series of new clauses on pensions injustices. It is intended to probe. I know from fellow MPs that there are significant amounts of casework about people who fall short of being acknowledged as receiving benefits from pensions, such as spouses or partners of different descriptions. Our world is complicated. I am adopted, and went from having one sibling to nine siblings in total; I have a complicated family. We all have complicated families. Equally, historically, pensions may not have taken account of how people’s lives might have become more complicated, such as with partners and the way that life moves on. We ask the Minister to reflect on that, and see how he may be able to tackle this injustice. I apologise for leaving before we complete the debate on the new clause, Ms Lewell.

• 11 Sept 2025 · Pension Schemes Bill (Eighth sitting) · Hansard source

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  I thank the Minister for putting his thoughts on the record. I beg to ask leave to withdraw the motion. Clause, by leave, withdrawn. New Clause 5 Report on fiduciary duty and discretionary indexation of pre-1997 benefits “(1) The Secretary of State must, within 12 months of the passing of this Act, publish a report on whether the fiduciary duties of trustees of occupational pension schemes should be amended to permit discretionary indexation of pre-1997 accrued rights, where scheme funding allows. (2) The report must consider— (a) the impact of current fiduciary obligations on trustees’ ability to award discretionary increases to pre-1997 pension benefits; (b) the potential benefits of permitting such discretionary indexation for affected pensioners; (c) the funding conditions and thresholds under which discretionary indexation could be considered sustainable; (d) the appropriate level of regulatory oversight and guidance required to ensure that discretionary increases are granted in a fair, transparent, and financially responsible manner; (e) international approaches to indexation of legacy pension benefits; (f) the legal and actuarial implications of amending fiduciary duties in this context. (3) In preparing the report, the Secretary of State must consult— (a) the Pensions Regulator, (b) the Financial Conduct Authority, (c) representatives of pension scheme trustees, members, and sponsoring employers, and (d) such other experts or bodies as the Secretary of State considers appropriate. (4) The Secretary of State must lay a copy of the report before both Houses of Parliament.”— (Steve Darling.) This new clause requires the Secretary of State to report on whether the fiduciary duties of trustees of occupational pension schemes should be amended to permit discretionary indexation of pre-1997 accrued rights, where scheme funding allows. Brought up, and read the First time.

• 11 Sept 2025 · Pension Schemes Bill (Eighth sitting) · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time. New clause 2 is about market consolidation, and ensuring that the Minister undertakes to report back so we can see how it is progressing. Clearly, market consolidation will have positive impacts, but there is a law of unforeseen consequences, so it is important to ensure that there is a regular health check on what is happening in the market. It is not only about that law of unintended consequences, but about checking out the opportunity for new entrants to come into the system, and making sure that there are no unexpected barriers. To our mind, it is good practice that one would hope would be undertaken. The new clause is a probing amendment; we will not be pressing it to a vote, but I look forward to reassurances from the Minister. We are keen to get on the public record what he says in this area, because we know from conversations with the industry that there is some interest in the matter.