Digital ID

Steve Darling Excerpts

Monday 13th October 2025 Commons Chamber

[Liz Kendall]

In the 15 years that I have been an MP, many people have said that it can be a nightmare trying to talk to different bits of the public sector: repeatedly having to give the same information and tell their story time and again. They are concerned about illegal working in this country. This is an important step forward in terms of improving how the state fits around people’s lives—it does not force them to fit into the system—and I think that is an issue that many Members across the House have in common with their constituents.

[Steve Darling (Torbay) (LD)]

I congratulate the Secretary of State on her new position. I am mindful of her previous position, where she masterminded the personal independence payment reforms, so with her proposals before us today I am concerned that she is fast becoming the Minister for lost causes. In my constituency, we have an awful lot of people who are digitally excluded; it is really sobering. Will she please give us some clear examples of how people will be helped? I know of dozens and dozens of people who are against the proposal in principle, but what about those who will potentially be excluded?

[Liz Kendall]

We have a £9.5 million digital inclusion fund that will support local organisations with grants of between £25,000 and £500,000 to help specific groups of people who are currently digitally excluded, to ensure that they can get the benefits of all manner of different private and public sector services that are available online. We will announce the results of the application process shortly. As always, I am happy to meet the hon. Gentleman for him to tell me about the specific issues in his constituency. If we need to do more to ensure that everybody is digitally included, we will act.

Hospitality Sector

Steve Darling Excerpts

Wednesday 3rd September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Steve Darling (Torbay) (LD)]

First—strangely for this debate—I would like to directly address part of the motion that is before us this afternoon. I am concerned that the harassment of people in the hospitality sector would be made worse under part of the motion. However, I strongly support the motion as a whole. As somebody who was brought up in a guest house in Torquay, you could say that the hospitality industry is in my blood. In my mind, Torbay is the premier resort in the United Kingdom; sadly, it is also the most deprived constituency that rejoices in having a Liberal Democrat MP, so there are some wicked challenges there as well.

My constituency has an income of £371 million from the hospitality sector. That is £1 million more than the national constituency average, with 1,000 businesses across the constituency rejoicing in providing hospitality. I warned last November that the national insurance hike would rip the heart out of our hospitality industry in the west of England and, sadly, I have been proven right. The Office for National Statistics has highlighted that there are 84,000 fewer jobs in this sector than there were, and there were a quarter fewer vacancies in the sector this summer in Devon and Cornwall. As colleagues have already highlighted, those are often entry-level jobs—opportunities for students to get some extra money in the summer break to help them through their time at university—so this is extremely important. There has been a lethal cocktail of the national insurance hike; the cost of living crisis, which has impacted not only the industry but the punters who have less discretionary spend; and the failure to properly reform business rates, which is essential.

One sector of our tourist industry that has been particularly hit is our zoos and aquariums. They have also suffered from the bum Brexit deal, which has left them with some real challenges in being able to replenish their animals from other zoos across Europe and elsewhere in the world. As such, I ask the Minister to convene a summit for zoos and aquariums up and down the country to assist them with the real economic challenges that many are experiencing in the challenging world that we in the United Kingdom face.

Scientific and Regulatory Procedures: Use of Dogs

Steve Darling Excerpts

Monday 28th April 2025 Westminster Hall

[Ruth Jones (Newport West and Islwyn) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship today, Ms Jardine. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for North Ayrshire and Arran (Irene Campbell) for leading this important debate. In Newport West and Islwyn, 562 of my constituents have signed this petition. I am pleased to have the opportunity to debate this important issue this afternoon, and to demonstrate, especially to those in the Public Gallery, that Members in this place are really listening and working on their behalf.

I would like to begin by paying tribute to the exceptional animal welfare charities, including, but not limited to, the RSPCA, Naturewatch Foundation, PETA, Animal Free Research UK, Replacing Animal Research and Cruelty Free International. Their vital work to brief MPs about key issues and campaigns, and to provide us with facts and figures, equips us to make representations in this place on behalf of animals. As we know, and as I always say, we must speak up for animals, because they cannot speak up for themselves.

As we have heard, in 2023 there were a total of 3,770 uses of dogs in scientific procedures. I am deeply concerned about the use, and the potential suffering, of any animal in research and testing. I firmly believe that the ultimate goal should be the total replacement of all animal experiments with humane alternatives, and I would like to see a diversion of existing funding, resources and expertise away from animal experiments.

I hope that this debate will encourage the consideration of all current uses of animals in science and illustrate the support for achieving faster development and uptake of non-animal technologies. However, as the petition illustrates, the strength of public feeling on this issue is particularly apparent when it comes to dogs, who—as we have already heard from hon. Members—are much-loved members of their families, whether they are ugly, pretty or whatever. That is really important.

I am delighted that this Labour Government have committed to working towards phasing out the use of animal testing. Scientific reviews highlight the inability of data from dogs to predict human response accurately and consistently. With the existence of new and developing cutting-edge technology, we do not need whole-body animal systems to assess chemical and drug safety or to advance our scientific knowledge of diseases. The adoption of non-animal technologies would enable rapid development of novel therapeutics and better safety testing data for the protection of human health. Such an approach has the potential to improve efficiency, speed and prediction for humans while cutting costs and reducing animal suffering. Human-specific approaches such as artificial intelligence, organ on a chip and computer modelling produce results that are much more relevant to people—as ably outlined in this debate.

I, like many others who may be more mature, have had the benefit of seeing the demonstration of these technologies at events in Parliament. It is really important that we actually go and see these technologies for ourselves.

[Steve Darling (Torbay) (LD)]

I was horrified when I became aware that dogs could still be force-fed pesticides as part of these proposals. Does the hon. Lady agree that what we need from the Government today—I hope we will hear this from the Minister—is clear dates for an end to testing on dogs and all animals?

[Ruth Jones]

If the hon. Gentleman had read my speech a little bit further, he would have found that I have some specific questions for the Minister—it is always good to ask specifics.

It is vital that the Government produce and execute ambitious road maps for accelerating the development and uptake of advanced non-animal technologies and new approach methodologies. The UK cannot afford to fall behind other countries that are already delivering on that.

I am delighted that my early-day motion 210, on Herbie’s law, has 49 signatures from hon. Members across the House—there is still time and space, in case anyone is wondering whether they want to sign it. Beagles make up 95% of the dogs used in the sort of animal testing procedures that we have heard about; Herbie’s law, named after a rescued beagle, would provide a practical framework for phasing out animal testing over the next decade and supporting the scientific community with that transition. I also wish my hon. Friend the Member for Exeter (Steve Race) well with his Bill, which is based on Herbie’s law, and I congratulate him on his hard work on this campaign.

I look forward to a comprehensive and ambitious plan from the Government for delivering this transition, and I am sure that the Minister is looking forward to outlining that as she winds up. The petition that inspired this debate today shows the strength of public feeling on this issue, so it is also vital that there is complete transparency in the reporting of statistics around the use of animals.

Oral Answers to Questions

Steve Darling Excerpts

Wednesday 20th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call Steve Darling.

[Steve Darling (Torbay) (LD)]

On question number 13, Mr Speaker, may I ask the Minister what steps he will take to ensure that people who are visually impaired are able to engage—

[Mr Speaker]

Order. Sorry—we have not reached that question. I call the Chair of the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee.