Speeches by Opher.

“13. What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the child poverty taskforce on levels of child poverty in Stroud.”

“In Stroud, after 14 years of austerity, over 4,000 children are living in poverty. A recent Joseph Rowntree Foundation report stated that after removing the two-child limit, the next most effective way of reducing child poverty is to get rid of the benefit cap. Would the Minister be willing at least to review the benef…”

“In the Stroud area, six schools are now teaching mental health first aid to 16-year-olds. Many students have received a form of qualification, which they can use for applications to jobs and university. At Rednock school, these students are wearing coloured lanyards so that other students can recognise them and ask the…”

“14. What steps she is taking to improve mental health support in schools.”

“Will my hon. Friend accept one more intervention?”

“If my hon. Friend looks at the statistics, he will see that it is usually the better-off in society who choose assisted dying, not the less well-off.”

“It is important to realise that if there are any suspicions around an assisted death, a coroner can still be involved. The new clause does not exclude that, but it stops the automatic referral to a coroner.”

“Will the hon. Lady give way?”

“Will my hon. Friend give way?”

“Will the hon. Lady give way?”

“Will the hon. Lady give way?”

“Will my hon. Friend give way?”

“Q2. In Gloucestershire, after 14 years, waiting lists for both physical and mental health are finally falling. Last week I hosted a roundtable with young people and heard how music and arts programmes, such as Gloucester’s fantastic Music Works, are transforming mental health outcomes. I also chaired a Comedy-on-Prescr…”

“I agree with some of the things that the hon. Member is saying, but we all want to build faster. Under the local district plan in Stroud, we have been waiting four years for our housing plan, and this Bill will free us from the quagmire that is our current planning system. Last Friday, I met representatives of the Glou…”

“Peaceful protest is a cornerstone of a functioning and healthy democracy, but people in Stroud and across the country felt that the legislation passed by the Conservatives in 2022 limited the right to peacefully protest. One of my constituents, Adam Beard, with whom I have worked for over five years in my GP surgery, w…”

“10. What assessment she has made of the potential merits of reviewing sentencing for peaceful protesters.”

“I am delighted to speak about this new Mental Health Bill. It follows up on the Mental Health Act 1983, which is as old as our Secretary of State, as we heard. What I have heard throughout the debate is that mental health affects us all in some way. It touches all of us, whether personally or through people we know rea…”

“That is certainly true, but we need to be careful, because part of the issue is the resources for mental health, rather than the Mental Health Act. We must not blur the two. The current Government are putting 8,500 mental health workers into the system, and I am delighted about that. Hopefully, it will prevent the wait…”

“Any restrictions around the doctor-patient relationship will harm patients, so I agree with my hon. Friend.”

“Yes, I am happy to give way.”