Male Suicide in Rotherham

Liz Twist Excerpts

Monday 24th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[Jake Richards]

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.

[Liz Twist (Blaydon and Consett) (Lab)]

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?

[Jake Richards]

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.