Male Suicide in Rotherham

Motion made, and Question proposed, That this House do now adjourn.—(Gen Kitchen.)

22:13:00

In Rotherham, male suicide is a silent tragedy on the rise. As the local MP, I receive too many calls or messages early in the morning or late at night, telling me about another husband, father, brother or friend who has died in these tragic circumstances. Each call haunts us and our communities, but it is nothing compared to the unimaginable sense of grief and agony suffered by family and friends. The growing phenomenon of male suicide is part of a wider storm we face: of worsening mental health and mental health provisions for men; of splintering communities and support networks; and of a society that too often makes some men feel that they are unable to open up or reach out for help, or indeed that they are themselves part of the problem. Tonight I want to make the argument for further Government action, and also offer a call to arms to us all. We can all do more to check in on our neighbours, friends and colleagues, and to build safe spaces for men to talk, to feel valued and to know that it is okay not to feel okay and that there is help. We should never forget the tragedy of women taking their own lives, too, and the particular circumstances that only women face that might lead them towards doing so. That matter is worthy of its own debate, though much of what we discuss will of course be relevant. The numbers for men are startling and worth stating bluntly: suicide is the biggest killer of men aged under 50. Men account for three out of four suicides in England and Wales. A hundred men end their lives each week across the country. In Rotherham, men account for 79% of suicides.

In Doncaster last year, 80% of those who died from suicide were men, and we of course have one of the largest numbers of veterans in the whole of Yorkshire and the Humber. Doncaster council has the armed forces covenant. Will my hon. Friend join me in promoting its work, particularly around the veteran-friendly suicide prevention training that makes a huge difference to all the people who take part in it?

My hon. Friend makes a good point. Just on Friday, I had the Defence Secretary, who is with us today, and the Veterans Minister in Dinnington to speak with veterans groups and organisations. Mental health provision was right at the top of the agenda, as it should be. Beyond each individual tragedy is a wider story. There is a specific challenge for policymakers in grappling with male suicide.

I commend the hon. Gentleman, who I spoke to beforehand. This is his first Adjournment debate, and it is on a subject that every one of us understands only too well. I am saddened to hear the vast number of reasons contributing to male suicide in his constituency. There is certainly more to be done to support men across the UK. Suicide happens everywhere and especially in men—70% of the suicides in Northern Ireland are men. The majority of them occur in deprived areas. Does he agree that we need greater accessibility to mental health services in deprived areas to ensure that men are not left behind?

I agree with the hon. Member, who makes a characteristically pithy point. John Leaver, who does incredible work with men in tough times in Kiveton Park and Wales in my constituency, is in many ways the inspiration for the debate and the campaign I intend to run in Rotherham. John works with men and women, but has extensive experience of the particular issues that men face in his area. He has often been the person telling me of another suicide, and not infrequently it is somebody he knows well, played football with, went to school with or is an old family friend. He spoke to me about the effect of the decline of post-industrial towns and villages, such as Kiveton Park, Dinnington, Maltby and Thurcroft in my constituency, on men and notions of masculinity. Those places were built on the back of coalmining—a proud tradition of honest hard work, offering a sense of purpose and meaning for generations of young men. We should not simply look back with rose-tinted spectacles, but after the closure of the pits, we have too often struggled to replace that social fabric for men. These remain brilliant communities with a long-standing sense of solidarity and camaraderie, but too many within them still feel lost. Even worse, too many men feel victimised or attacked. I was recently struck by the words of musician Sam Fender in a newspaper interview. Speaking about the towns in the north-east of England that he grew up in, he said lads were “being shamed all the time and made to feel like they’re a problem. It’s this narrative being told to white boys from nowhere towns.” I fear there is some truth to that—that men from towns built in a bygone era feel they are a problem in modern times. I want to play my part as the local MP in changing that, and I am not alone. Brilliant organisations in my constituency already do fantastic work. Andy’s Man Club in Maltby and Kiveton Park meet every Monday evening. Better Today, run by John Leaver, is incredible at supporting men in times of real difficulty. There are many fantastic sports clubs and associations, from boxing in Dinnington to Swallownest FC and Maltby Main FC. There are the regular coffee mornings, the walking and rambling clubs, and the monthly men’s breakfast in Anston. They all play a vital role in supporting men in difficult circumstances.

Veterans have already been mentioned by my hon. Friend the Member for Doncaster East and the Isle of Axholme (Lee Pitcher). Would my hon. Friend join me in paying tribute to Veterans In Need Together? He talks about organisations that support men. That organisation supports men every Wednesday at Morley fire station without fail and offers support to those who need it.

That service in my hon. Friend’s constituency sounds vital—just like those in my constituency. The focus on veterans in particular is critical. Suicide does not simply affect the person taking their own life. Families lose loved ones and towns and villages are scarred by the traumatic loss of people with great promise and talent. The number of men who kill themselves every year is eclipsed by the number of people affected by their loss. I will use my role as the local MP to press the Government to take action. There are specific policy issues that I want to raise. I am very aware of specific issues to do with gambling and male suicide. I have met two local mothers who are fighting for justice after their sons, both of whom were hard-working, talented and honourable men, took their own lives far too young as a result of spiralling online gambling addictions. Social media and technology have allowed vulnerable users easier access to gambling. A report found two years ago that there had been a 43% annual rise in demand for NHS gambling clinics, and that one in three of those patients had already attempted to take their own lives. It is estimated that every year there are more than 400 gambling-related suicides in England—and those are the ones we know of. I have before urged the Government to consider ways in which we can empower coroners courts, and indeed place responsibilities on coroners, to look at these issues in a robust and rigorous manner. At the moment, the causative link between gambling addiction and suicide is not given appropriate recognition. There are broader issues. Although the issue of men’s mental health is complex, there are specific policy areas that the Government must confront. First, the rates of men taking their own lives are highest in the most deprived communities. The suicide rate in the most deprived 10% of areas in England in the two years from 2017 to 2019 was 14.1%—almost double the rate in the least deprived areas. Indeed, rates of men taking their own lives in the regions of England are almost double what they are in London. Tackling poverty and insecure work across our country is a Labour mission, and it is one that will save lives.

I thank the hon. Member for giving way and for speaking so eloquently about this difficult and sensitive subject. On that point, it is known that those living in poverty are three times more likely to take their own lives or have mental health issues than people on the average wage. Linking into that, 85% of homeless people are men, and their homelessness is often related to mental health issues. I appreciate all the work that he is doing to highlight poverty.

There is a direct link and we should not shy away from acknowledging, confronting and talking about it. When we talk about tackling poverty, we are talking about saving lives, too. Secondly, we must save our NHS. This Government inherited a dilapidated health service and a particularly severely under-resourced mental health service. Fourteen years of under-investment and chaotic reform have hindered efforts to grasp this crisis. Long delays for treatment and diagnosis mean that so many men cannot get the support that they need and face worsening mental health in the meantime. Thirdly, in my view we must be bolder in acknowledging the role that technology and social media have played in this crisis. New technology and social media can help efforts to combat men in difficult times: the internet can allow faster access to mental health provisions and can provide a network. However, it has been clear for more than a decade now that technology and social media can be deeply damaging to mental health, eroding confidence, often siloing rather than enhancing our communities, and exposing people to potentially harmful material. I know that many colleagues in the House have been moved by the Netflix drama “Adolescence”, which shines a light on the way the internet can remould ideas of masculinity and purpose—completely unbeknown to those closest to the 13-year-old boy in that drama. Men, especially our young men, are spending less time outside and less time meeting people and communicating in person—all things that make us far happier and healthier. They are often sat alone for hours being bombarded with algorithms showing unrealistic representations of life, or communicating through anonymous group chats. Research shows that self-harm content has sometimes been allowed to flourish on social media by companies failing to remove explicit images and encouraging those engaging with such content to befriend one another. The arrival of smartphones has taken place in parallel with sharp rises in depression and anxiety in our young people. Of particular concern is the impact that mobile phones have on our young people. The average 12-year-old now spends 29 hours a week on their phone—equivalent to doing a part-time job.

I commend my hon. Friend for securing the debate and for speaking so powerfully. Does he agree that we must also consider the employment-related, sectoral issues in tackling male suicide?

Absolutely, and my hon. Friend has done so much admirable work in this area, long before my time in the House, so I can only learn from her. One point about suicide and male suicide is that an array of policy issues feed into it. This should not be a policy concern for the Government in silo; it should be part of every policy area, and every Department should have those concerns about mental health and suicide protection at its heart. I was talking about mobile phones and the effect they have had. Since 2010, the average time that teens spend with friends each day has fallen by 65%. I applaud recent Government announcements about reviewing those policy areas, but I urge them to grasp the nettle when it comes to technology, phones, young people and mental health. In a decade’s time I believe we will wonder why we did not do so far sooner.

I thank the hon. Member for securing this debate. I am working closely with him on the Mental Health Bill. Does he agree that one issue for families who are worried about their loved one is that when they are over the age of 18, there can be barriers in law in terms of the presumption of capacity and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 when it comes to raising the alarm with public authorities?

I am grateful to the hon. Member, who has a remarkable ability to bring that important issue into any debate or intervention he makes. He is the most vociferous campaigner on that cause. I support him in that, and I know the Minister will also be listening. I want to finish with the action I will take as the local MP. First, I pledge to continue to support the brilliant services we already have. I remember attending my first Andy’s Man Club in Maltby during the general election campaign. I must admit I was slightly cynical. I had seen the marketing, but questioned how effective or useful that informal meeting would be. I was blown away. Over the course of a few hours, a group of blokes spoke about their weeks, and their problems, over a cup of tea. Some of the chat was mundane: they were finding their work more boring, or they had had a good weekend with the family. Others were dealing with the most impossible trauma that put all else—in particular my election campaign—into stark perspective. Afterwards, everyone walked away ready to face the week, however big the challenges ahead. I have since met so many men who use that service. One of the first things I did once elected was to bring Andy’s Man Club to Parliament. I promise to continue to champion its work, and the work of many others. I also regularly meet local health practitioners in Rotherham to hear their strategies to bring down the rate of men ending their own lives locally. The work of Rotherham health and wellbeing board, and the South Yorkshire integrated care system is hugely commendable, not least the emphasis on improving data and evidence to ensure effective and timely interventions, and providing tailored, targeted support to priority groups and effective bereavement support to those affected by men taking their own lives. Those plans sit within strategies to tackle loneliness, health inequality and domestic abuse. I have committed to holding regular meetings with all GP practices in my constituency, and other support groups, to help tackle male suicide. We will hear from the Minister shortly about the Government’s national efforts, and from conversations with him I have no doubt that he grasps the severity of this crisis and the urgency with which this Government must confront it. Rest assured, I will be challenging the Government every step of the way to be ambitious in this agenda, and to ensure that policies will work for every town and village in Rotherham. Locally, I will be setting up my Rotherham taskforce to hold authorities to account, working with men and women who are on the front line confronting this issue. We will lead the ongoing awareness campaign and ensure that professionals, and local and national Government, treat this issue with the seriousness it deserves. I am grateful for the opportunity to speak about this important issue, and I hope that by doing so we begin more conversations across our borough. Together, we can bring about meaningful change, and save lives.

I believe the hon. Lady has permission from the hon. Member for Rother Valley (Jake Richards) to make a brief contribution.

22:28:00

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, and I thank my hon. Friend for securing this debate. We have heard that male mental health is an issue that deserves our full attention. In my constituency of Portsmouth, suicide is the leading cause of death among males aged between 20 to 49. Each year 24 people in Portsmouth take their own lives, and 78% of them are men. Compared with the national average, Portsmouth has higher rates of divorce, homelessness and alcohol-related admissions, which are all contributing factors to poor mental health and suicide. Despite those heartbreaking statistics, we lack enough dedicated local charities. National charities such as the Samaritans and Andy’s Man Club provide critical support but lack local initiatives. However, groups such as SPEAK and Man Mind, and fabulous individuals, help men to have spaces to talk and mental health walks. However, those alone are not enough and we need more funding. My constituency is home to many veterans, a group in dire need of improved mental health support. Yet in reports on suicide prevention action from 2022 to 2025, veterans are not even listed as a high-risk group. That is unacceptable. Portsmouth has a proud military history and we must do what we can. The construction industry is the backbone of our nation, and suicide rates in that group are four times higher than the national average. One of the biggest barriers to male mental health support is stigma and the culture of silence. As the mum of three lads, or should I say young men, it is heartbreaking for me to know that they have had first-hand experience in their friendship groups of male suicide. Fortunately, not all those attempts were successful, but some were. That has had a lasting impact on the young men’s outlook and their friendships, and has been devastating for those around them. It is time for the Government to take bold steps to tackle the crisis. We need targeted funding for male mental health services, in combination with stronger support for at-risk groups, whether they are veterans, construction workers or young men. We must create safe spaces for men to open up, and we must ensure that no man feels that suicide is his only option, because it is not.

22:30:00

I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Rother Valley (Jake Richards) for securing this debate and for raising the extremely serious issue of male suicide. I also congratulate him on obtaining his first Adjournment debate. I am sure that it will not be the last. He is a doughty campaigner for his constituents. I thank other Members for their valuable contributions, particularly my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth North (Amanda Martin), who made a powerful speech. I offer my deepest condolences to those who have been tragically bereaved by suicide. Men tend to seek help for their mental health less than women. As my hon. Friend the Member for Rother Valley said, men are also more likely to die by suicide, accounting for three out of four suicides. Rates in Rother Valley sadly reflect that statistic. Today, mental ill health is on the rise, and the shocking fact is that suicide is the biggest killer for men under 50. Just as we are determined to end the injustices that women face in healthcare, we will not shy away from the need to focus on men’s health too. That is why the Government will publish a men’s health strategy to tackle those problems head-on. In November, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care brought together leading campaigners, experts and the Premier League to gather ideas and inform our strategy and our 10-year health plan. We take suicide prevention extremely seriously, because every suicide is a tragedy that has a devastating and enduring impact on families, friends and communities. With that in mind, I would like to express my gratitude for the hard work and dedication of local frontline services, including the voluntary sector, which play such a vital role in supporting people who experience suicidal thoughts or contemplate taking their own lives. Such organisations include Andy’s Man Club, Rotherham Samaritans and James’ Place, to name just a few. The cross-sector suicide prevention strategy for England, which was published in 2023, has made some progress, and we are working closely with local authorities, health systems and our partners in the voluntary community to see that progress through. The strategy identifies middle-aged men as a priority group for targeted support at a national level. It rightly focuses on key drivers that we know can affect men’s lives, such as gambling, financial difficulties and substance misuse. Rotherham council has developed a three-year plan for suicide prevention and self-harm, which I understand is currently out for consultation with local partners. I commend the council and all local partners involved in the development of the plan. I hope that it will provide a strong foundation for a new partnership between local government and national Government, because people in my hon. Friend’s constituency deserve backing at every level. My hon. Friend raised the shocking issue of young men taking their own lives as a result of problem gambling. The NHS has expanded support for those who need help to overcome gambling addictions. Individuals can self-refer to specialist gambling clinics in England, where they can be supported by psychiatrists. Our suicide prevention strategy for England identifies gambling as a common risk factor and lists actions to reduce suicide as a result of gambling. We will explore opportunities to go further to support people with gambling addictions. It can be hard for a young man in today’s society, particularly for boys in the most deprived areas of England, who are expected to live almost 10 years less than those in the wealthiest areas. We are committed to improving the nation’s mental health services to ensure that individuals can get the support they need when they need it. We are recruiting 8,500 new mental health workers, who will be trained to support people at risk of suicide. We are also committed to improving the support available to those experiencing a mental health crisis. This year, the Government are providing £26 million in capital investment to open new mental health crisis centres, reducing pressure on busy A&E services and ensuring that people have the support they need when and where they need it. These new centres will include crisis houses, providing overnight accommodation, sanctuaries and safe havens, calm environments for people to visit during the day and mental health-specific spaces in or adjacent to A&E departments. I am also grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Rother Valley for raising the important issue of technology, which can have a profoundly damaging effect. We should all be concerned about the widespread availability of harmful content online that promotes suicide and self-harm and can be easily accessed by people who may be vulnerable. The suicide prevention strategy for England identifies online safety as a priority area for action across Government. We are working closely with our colleagues at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology in this area, including to deliver the commitments in the strategy and to look at what else can be done to address online harms, including harmful content shared on pro-suicide websites and forums. There is still uncertainty about the relationship between screen time, social media use and child development. However, I look forward to seeing the results of DSIT’s research into the impact of smartphones on children, which is due to be published in May this year. Our current focus is on keeping young people safe while also benefiting from the latest technology. By the summer, robust new protections for children will be in force through the Online Safety Act 2023 to protect them from harmful content and ensure that they have an age-appropriate experience online. Alongside getting those laws in place, we are committed to building the evidence base to inform future action to protect young people online. It is not only the dangers of technology that are a concern for young people. Young people present unique challenges, and early intervention is vital if we want to stop children and young people from reaching crisis point today or developing mental health issues in the longer term. Schools and colleges play an important role in that early support, which is why we are providing access to a mental health professional for every school. We know that mental health support teams, such as the With Me In Mind team based in Doncaster and Rotherham, help to meet the mental health needs of children and young people in education settings. We are also committed to rolling out open access Young Futures hubs in communities. This national network is expected to bring local services together and deliver support for young people facing mental health challenges. The Department for Education is also reviewing the relationship, sex and health education statutory guidance, and the Secretary of State for Education is clear that children’s wellbeing should be at the heart of it. The DFE will look carefully at the consultation responses, considering relevant evidence and talking to partners, including on mental wellbeing and suicide prevention, before setting out next steps and engaging with wider experts. As part of this process, the DFE will explore whether additional content is required, including on suicide and self-harm. Mental health is, and remains, a priority for the NHS. It is backed by the mental health investment standard, which continues in 2025-26 to ensure that mental health funding is ringfenced to support delivery of our commitments, including those outlined in the NHS planning guidance. The Government have a statutory requirement to publish an annual statement setting out expectations for NHS mental health spending before the next financial year begins. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will publish that statement in due course. I will end with a call to action. Suicide is everyone’s business; when we improve men’s health, the benefits can ripple through families, communities, societies and the economy. When we strive to improve men’s health, it will not just transform the lives of boys and men, but those of their wives, mothers, sisters, partners, mates, neighbours, children, teachers and doctors. That is why I strongly encourage all the men listening to this debate to go to the Change NHS online portal, to give their views on how to build an NHS that is fit for the future through our 10-year health plan. Together, we will transform healthcare for men in the Rother valley, in the north of England, and across our country. Question put and agreed to.

22:39:00