Eating Disorders: Prevention of Deaths Debate

Full Debate: Read Full Debate
Department: Department of Health and Social Care

Eating Disorders: Prevention of Deaths

Cameron Thomas Excerpts
Tuesday 2nd September 2025

(2 days ago)

Westminster Hall
Read Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts

Westminster Hall is an alternative Chamber for MPs to hold debates, named after the adjoining Westminster Hall.

Each debate is chaired by an MP from the Panel of Chairs, rather than the Speaker or Deputy Speaker. A Government Minister will give the final speech, and no votes may be called on the debate topic.

This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record

Cameron Thomas Portrait Cameron Thomas (Tewkesbury) (LD)
- Hansard - -

I thank the hon. Member for Isle of Wight West (Mr Quigley) for securing this important debate. My constituent Katie is mother to a daughter who, at the age of 14, became unwell from anorexia in the aftermath of the covid pandemic. She identified the warning signs early, but when she sought help, early intervention was unavailable. She describes how her daughter was eventually admitted to a hospital, only to be put on a waiting list. Her health would crash, she would go back to another facility and of course the cycle continued. Katie described how her whole family now lives with the eating disorder. I hope that she will take some measure of comfort from the fact that her experiences and those of her family have been echoed so consistently across this House, but that also speaks to the prevalence of eating disorders. It is astonishing that there is no reference to or strategy on them at all in the Government’s 10-year health plan, and I hope that the Minister will put that right this afternoon.