Suicide Prevention

Samantha Niblett Excerpts

Thursday 11th September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Samantha Niblett (South Derbyshire) (Lab)]

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Doncaster East and the Isle of Axholme (Lee Pitcher) for securing today’s vital debate. This issue is particularly personal for me, and I have been open about it in the House before. I was 11 when my mum first tried to take her own life, and I am so grateful to the Samaritans, whose badge I wear with pride, because it was they who saved her that first time. She was eventually diagnosed with bipolar disorder and finally got the support and medication she needed, and I am so thankful that she is around today to be the brilliant mum that she is—I know she is watching this right now.

In my 30s, I went through a tough time. Had it not been for my wonderful daughter, I would have liked to switch my “on” button off. I am not alone, because one in four people will have suicidal thoughts, and one in 13 will attempt to take their own life over the course of their life. Forty-five is the age at which a woman is most likely to take her own life, often influenced by hormonal changes ahead of menopause. I am a 45-year-old menopausal woman, so that sobering fact hits hard, and I am grateful for hormone replacement therapy. We need to ensure that more women are able to access the right support when they are going through these changes.

But as Members have said today, suicide does not just affect women. Veterans of all genders living with PTSD have a heightened risk of suicide after serving their country. There was a disturbing increase in suicides by farmers between 2022 and 2023, with more feared because of changes to inheritance tax rules. Suicide is the biggest killer of people under 35 and the biggest killer of men under 50, and we know that there is a significant crisis in men’s mental health. Nationally, there are a lot of organisations that aim to support men with their mental health, such as Andy’s Man Club and men’s sheds. Luckily, in my constituency of South Derbyshire, ManClub was set up last year after a local chef, Craig Riley, tragically died by suicide. Joe Ward, one of the founders and a friend of Craig’s, lives in Melbourne and now helps to run weekly meetings on Monday evenings at Melbourne Assembly Rooms, where men can talk openly without fear of judgment.

This Saturday, the Baton of Hope, a suicide prevention charity, will be touring through Derbyshire. It was started by two fathers whose sons tragically died by suicide. One of those fathers, Mike McCarthy, along with others affected or bereaved by suicide, will be stopping by Elvaston Castle in South Derbyshire on their tour, and I wish them all the best. I cannot wait to meet them in Parliament in December with my fellow Derbyshire MPs.

I want to live in a society in which no one ever feels like suicide is their only option. People deserve holistic and accessible mental health support through access to medication and/or affordable therapies. That is why I am so glad that the Government are fixing our precious NHS. But this is about so much more than healthcare and treating people with mental health issues; it is about preventing them from feeling suicidal in the first place—and so much of that comes from a greater sense of security, and hopefulness instead of hopelessness. Hope is so much easier to have when people have a secure home, good, well-paid jobs, a sense of purpose and a united feeling of community. I know that this Government desperately want to ensure that everyone has that, and that they are striving really hard to deliver it.