Business of the House

Claire Hughes Excerpts

Thursday 17th July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Claire Hughes (Bangor Aberconwy) (Lab)]

This week I joined the Youth Futures Foundation for the launch of a new report, which reveals the root causes of declining mental health among young people. The report identified four key factors: not just social media and smartphone use, but financial insecurity, declining sleep quality and cuts to youth services. Given the urgent need to address this crisis among young people, including the links with unemployment, would the Leader of the House grant a debate in Government time, after recess, on young people’s mental health? Will she also join me in wishing all the young people finishing school in Bangor Aberconwy this week a very brilliant summer?

[Lucy Powell]

I will certainly join my hon. Friend in wishing all the young people and children finishing school this week in her constituency and elsewhere a full and happy summer, which I hope they will get. She rightly raises the issue of children’s mental health. She will know that we inherited a dire situation, especially post covid, and that a whole generation of our children have been let down on mental health support. We are determined to put that right; it is a priority for this Government. That is why we are putting in specialist mental health professionals in every school and ensuring support for a million more children this year. We will be doing a lot more to tackle this issue in coming months.