Business of the House

Sojan Joseph Excerpts

Thursday 10th September 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

Let me join my hon. Friend in thanking Stepping Stones for the vital services it provides and celebrating its 35th anniversary. As he suggests, we are developing a new mental health strategy for England. We have announced up to 159 new NHS mental health centres, backed by £343 million over the next four years. I will ensure that he gets a response from the Health Secretary so that he can hear more exactly about what we intend to do.

[Sojan Joseph (Ashford) (Lab)]

I am proud of the high streets in my constituency, as every other Member is proud of the high streets in theirs, and I want to see them continue to flourish. We should be doing everything we can to encourage more people to travel to their high street to support local businesses. It is therefore important that shoppers and other visitors do not have additional costs such as unnecessary car parking charges, especially due to unregulated private parking companies and their ticket machines, which often do not work. Will the Leader of the House find time for a debate on the importance of high streets and what steps can be taken to keep them vibrant?