Will Stone
MP for Swindon North · Labour · United Kingdom
“On youth provision, does my hon. Friend agree that it is incredibly important that we have sport provision and mentorship, which can play a key role in tackling the youth mental health crisis? Will she join me in thanking my local charity, BEST, for the work that it does?”
“On that point about working in remote environments, does the hon. Member agree that we should be looking to integrate more drone technology to support mountain rescue, and will she join me in praising the work that Flyby Technology has been doing in this space?”
“I thank the Minister for her response. This review is incredibly important in protecting people’s rights to protest and ensuring that our communities are kept safe. Will she give me her word that she will do everything within her power to ensure that the review comes out by the end of May?”
“I thank the Minister for her response. The cultivated meat sector could bring in billions of pounds to the UK economy and help to increase food chain security. Companies such as Hoxton Farms are leading the way in this—they are genuinely world-leading.”
“My hon. Friend has advanced a very powerful vision of the global events affecting the country right now. When I talk to defence tech companies, I see that they reach the point of scaling up, but they are unable to access finance. Does my hon.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for his fantastic speech so far. He has talked about banning social media, and I completely agree with him. Does he agree with me that we are seeing a correlation between excessive screen time and poor mental health, and that social media companies need to be more accountable for what they are allowing the next gene…”
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“I thank my hon. Friend for her response. Harry Parker was 14 years old when he got run over. The person who took his life did not have a driving licence or any insurance, and did not stop, yet last November the charges were dropped. This is partially down to section 3ZB of the Road Traffic Act 1988. Will my hon. Friend review section 3ZB and meet me to see how we can close the loopholes?”
“AI technology still requires trials and testing before it can be officially approved. However, when the health and lives of dogs are on the line, is it really fair only to use potential data to make it more accurate? The opportunity for the UK to lead in this field and become a global leader is immense. There is no reason that we as the Government should not push forward and make progress. Our Government and Labour are keen to accelerate the adoption of non-animal testing methods, and this debate is exactly the mechanism to push that forward. Once again, I thank the people who started this petition and those who have signed it. I hope that the Government listen and start to put an end to and phase out the use of testing on dogs.”
“They are already helping to reduce the need for animals in testing and, in some cases, starting to replace them fully. AI systems now allow researchers to track animal behaviour more precisely, which is reducing the number of animals required to extract more meaningful data. In the United States, the FDA has already begun to phase out animal testing, replacing it with more human-relevant models such as AI-driven toxicity screening and organoids. I think it is a rule of thumb that, if the United States is starting to do better in animal welfare than us, we probably need to take a hard look in the mirror, because something has gone wrong. The UK cannot afford to fall behind on this. We have a chance to be a world leader. We have a chance to excel in AI and to boom off its growth.”
“It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Ms Jardine. I thank all the petitioners and the people of Swindon North who have signed it, as well as the growing number of citizens across the UK who believe that dogs should not be used in science. We are a country of animal lovers; we love our dogs; and we are going past a point where they should be used for experiments. Some may argue that dogs have a similar biology to humans, but there is still no guarantee of accurate data. Putting it simply, it is not worth the risk. Dogs do not have their own voice, so it is up to us to speak for them. Personally, I would like to see a future using AI technologies such as organ on a chip, which can mimic the structures and functions of human tissues or organs in the lab, and virtual models that are changing how we do medical research.”
“I am sure that everybody in this room would say that Thames Water should not increase its prices. I am pleased that the Government are planning to introduce more regulation, to monitor the sewage systems more and to give Ofwat more power. I just want to see it use that power. I again thank the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam. I thought that the debate would be a bit busier so I did not plan a long speech, but this issue is vitally important, and I look forward to hearing what the Minister has to say.”
“Thames Water needs to be more accountable to the public. In Swindon we also have flooding, like in every constituency. We have it from Priory Vale to Stratton St Margaret. Thames Water has agreed that it is at fault and that this is its problem, yet has done nothing about it. That is unacceptable. Residents cannot remortgage their house or move on, and are trapped in a situation where they have to accept that every year their house will flood while, once again, Thames Water makes more profit. That is completely shoddy and unacceptable. We have also heard today about the increase in prices. I urge Ofwat to reject Thames Water’s new claim to increase prices. As we have said, Thames Water is not delivering and not accountable. What metric is it actually succeeding on? This is unacceptable.”
“At the same time as not investing, Thames Water has been paying out astronomical fees to its chief executive, and to its shareholders in dividends—that is completely ridiculous, and it is being passed on to my residents. We need to look at changing that. Let me flip the page to other Thames Water failures and look at its customer service: it was attempting to charge a resident in Swindon North over £11,000, saying he was using an Olympic-sized swimming pool of water weekly. He battled for over a year, getting nowhere. It took one email from me to get Thames Water to come out and look at it—shock horror, he was not using an Olympic-sized swimming pool. Thames Water actually owed him money. It should not take a Member of Parliament emailing to intervene—that is completely wrong and unacceptable.”
“I thank the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Luke Taylor) for bringing forward this debate. I am a little surprised that there are only 10 things he hates about Thames Water; my list is significantly longer. It is a really important debate. I wanted to come into it with a balanced view, and not just slate Thames Water, but it is incredibly hard. I feel that Thames Water is systematically failing the public on pretty much every level. We have seen a lack of investment in infrastructure, which has resulted in mass pollution, the needless deaths of thousands of animals and fish and destruction to our natural habitat, which is completely unacceptable.”
“Day in, day out they are out there looking after the veterans, raising money, offering support with housing and being a friendly ear for people to talk to. I thank everyone in the Royal British Legion for all that they do. I am really looking forward to hearing what the Minister has to say, because I know he is working so hard on championing veterans. I cannot think of anyone better placed to be doing that, to be honest, because he gets it. I thank all Members for being here and I look forward to hearing their contributions.”
“One of the saddest days of my life was when I was leaving, driving out of Beachley barracks, and knowing that I was not going to have that sense of community and belonging again. It was really quite emotional. Until I visited my local branch, I did not really pick up on the fact that people do not necessarily have that community and that outreach in a place where they can go and talk to other veterans. The Royal British Legion does that fantastically. We see people leave the armed forces and lose their sense of purpose, their ability, their person and their identity. It is so important that they have a place where they can gather together. I am short on time, so I will have to cut down my speech. I thank all the people out there who are putting this together.”
“I thank the hon. Member for Hinckley and Bosworth (Dr Evans) for his thoughtful contribution. I put on the record my thanks to my local Royal British Legion branch in Lower Stratton, and to Pallbearer Jeff, who is an amazing guy. I want to talk about why the Royal British Legion is important, as opposed to what it does. I am a proud veteran, as an ex-member of the armed forces in 1st Battalion the Rifles. One of the things that comes to mind when I think about what the Royal British Legion does is building a sense of community. I am not saying that people do not understand unless they have been in the military, but it is a job like no other, and it really becomes part of you.”
“Over the past decade, we have seen uncertainty in the rail sector. Will the Minister please reassure me that she will be taking decisions differently, to focus on delivery, especially on links such as Swindon to Oxford?”
“1. What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of recent trends in levels of disability living allowance cases that have been incorrectly reduced to a lower rate without an explanation.”
“Will the Minister please outline how this Government will support young disabled people to have a positive engagement with the benefit system alongside work?”
“I thank the Minister for her response. Would she consider meeting me so that we can work together on growing IOTs like Swindon, especially given their degree-awarding powers?”
“Although I welcome Labour’s plan to build 1.5 million houses, I am keen that we do that responsibly and ensure that the developments have the infrastructure to support market towns, making them more accessible but not taking away their independence. I thank all the hon. Members who have spoken in this interesting debate. My big ask for the Government is to build those houses responsibly and to support communities.”
“I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Southend East and Rochford (Mr Alaba) for bringing forward this debate. When people think of Swindon North they do not necessarily think of market towns, but my constituency happens to have one of the most beautiful market towns in the country. Some people call it “the gateway to the Cotswolds”; I prefer to call it “the entrance to Swindon”. That truly beautiful town is Highworth. I am short on time, but I give a massive thanks to Highworth town council, and mainly to the mayor, Julie, for her hard work in keeping its cultural heritage. I want to talk about the importance of development.”
“In my time in the Army, I saw at first hand blokes not getting the kit and equipment that they needed to operate efficiently. It angered me to read this weekend that the previous Administration wasted £5 million on McClaren mudflaps. Will the Secretary of State promise me that he will not take the— [ Interruption. ]”
“To return to my question, I angers me that the previous Administration wasted £5 million, when blokes like me did not have the kit and equipment that they needed to operate— [ Interruption. ] That is a fact. Will the Secretary of State promise me that he will put service personnel and our nation’s security first?”
“The Government need to work with some private companies to see what they are doing and what services they can offer alongside our schools, so that we can let our teachers teach and not overburden them. I am really proud to be part of this debate. If we want to look after people and ensure that they do not suffer with mental health issues due to financial stress, we have to get a grip of this. I look forward to hearing what the Minister and other Members have to say.”
“The evidence for that is overwhelming, and as a Government we need to start getting on top of it. I saw my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Chris Vince) squint a little when Members were talking about changing what and how teachers should teach—he has a terrible poker face—but we need to look at how to introduce this across the board so that it does not put more pressure on teachers, because they are under enough under enough pressure as it is. Some good things are going on in the private sector. We have great companies such as Nationwide, whose headquarters are in Swindon—something I am incredibly proud of. We also have Santander, which is not in Swindon, but it is still doing great work so I will give it praise.”
“I thank the hon. Member for Broadland and Fakenham (Jerome Mayhew) for bringing forward this important debate on something that we do not discuss enough. I was not hugely knowledgeable on it until my partner became a financial adviser; we have lots of financial discussions now. More often than not, she is telling me that I spend too much money on Warhammer. I say it is an investment—it is definitely not. Those discussions opened my eyes massively, and some shocking things came up. For example, only 20% of self-employed people pay into a pension. That is a ticking time bomb, and we must address it. I really think that comes through education. As the hon. Member for Mid Leicestershire (Mr Bedford) said, our habits towards money are formed at an early age.”
“Question put and agreed to. Ordered, That Will Stone, Mr Bayo Alaba, Dan Aldridge, Alex McIntyre, Luke Myer, Chris Vince, Alex Ballinger, Tom Hayes, Henry Tufnell, Dr Roz Savage, Deidre Costigan and Frank McNally present the Bill. Will Stone accordingly presented the Bill. Bill read the F irst time; to be read a S econd time on Friday 13 June, and to be printed (Bill 174).”
“A person who does not hold a valid licence has no business being behind the wheel of a car, and when they are, they put lives at risk. I cannot bring Harry back, nor can I give Adam and Kelly the justice they deserve. No legislation, no speech and no court ruling will ever ease their pain. What we can do—what we must do—is ensure that no other family has to endure what they have been through. The Harry Parker Bill seeks to close the dangerous gaps in our legal system and impose real-world consequences on those who choose to drive without a licence; under the Bill, those who drive without a valid licence are deemed careless. I urge the House to join me in honouring Harry’s memory not just with words, but with action. Let us commit to making our roads safer for all. I urge the Government to consider this Bill in their road safety strategy.”
“The person who struck Harry was driving without a licence and without insurance and failed to stop at the scene. Given the circumstances, one might assume that justice would be served and that the individual would face serious criminal charges, yet in November 2024, all charges were dropped. Let me be absolutely clear: this is not an attack on the Crown Prosecution Service or the police. They followed the law as it stands, but that is precisely the problem. The law in its current form is failing. We must ask ourselves how it can be that a person can drive illegally and take a life, yet face no legal consequences. How can it be that knowingly operating a vehicle without a licence is not automatically deemed careless or dangerous driving? The answer is simple: our system is flawed.”
“Those who knew him said he was a very popular and charming young man. To his parents, he was their world. Adam says: “He had the biggest heart and loved to make people laugh. He could light up the room with just his presence.” However, on 25 November 2022, the unspeakable happened—an event that truly rocked our community. Harry was struck by a car outside his school, which sadly resulted in his death. This, in itself, is a tragedy. Harry was a young, 14-year-old boy with his whole life ahead of him. I ask the House to join me in expressing our deepest condolences to the family, and to recognise them and their remarkable strength in facing this unimaginable loss. Losing Harry was tragic enough, but what followed made it even worse.”
“I beg to move, That leave be given to bring in a Bill to provide that an unlicensed driver who has never held a valid driving licence and who causes the death of another person by driving commits the offence of careless driving under section 3 of the Road Traffic Act 1988; and for connected purposes. I thank Members for being present as I introduce the Harry Parker Bill. Before I speak to the aim of the Bill, I will give some context. This is not just a policy matter; it is about justice, accountability and preventing future tragedies. Who was Harry? What happened to him? And how can we change the law to prevent anyone from going through what his parents Adam and Kelly, who are sitting in the Gallery, have gone through? Harry was a 14-year-old boy. He loved football, taking home a trophy or two in his time.”
“I thank the Minister for her response. I am incredibly passionate about animal welfare—I have a dog and a cat—and for the most part we are an animal-loving country. That is why I find it so shocking that we still have practices such as greyhound racing that treat animals as disposable. If they do not run fast enough or if they get injured, they get binned off. Some of them are still spending 80% of their life in kennels. Will the Minister meet me to discuss this issue further?”
“Q6. In Swindon North, we have the Panattoni Park development, which is one of the largest employment developments in Europe and has massive potential for growth. Will the Prime Minister join me in acknowledging the site for boosting economic growth in not only my region but the country, and will he visit it with me?”
“I thank my hon. Friend for his statement. There has been some suggestion that Saudi Arabia and other global partners might want to join the programme. What does the Committee think of that?”
“It is important that we talk about obesity and food, and I am thankful that the Government have taken forward preventative measures for care in the community first, and I look forward to hearing what the Minister has to say on that. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Stroud for bringing the debate forward and hon. Members for taking part in it.”
“One of them is that 36.8% of children in my constituency leave primary school overweight—a shocking statistic. They are being set up for failure later in life, for example by getting conditions such as diabetes. It is something we absolutely have to address. As Members have mentioned, when we dig a little deeper into the statistics, we see that not only are those children overweight, but more often than not they come from deprived areas. That means it is not only a health issue, but an equalities issue. That is something our Government have set out to fix, and it is something we must take seriously. Once again, I am proud that we are having this debate.”
“On that note, I will keep it short. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Stroud (Dr Opher) for bringing forward the debate. I slightly disagree with his suggestion that food is the only answer, because I think fitness plays a part, but I guess that is a slightly different discussion. Prior to becoming an MP, I was a physical training instructor in the Army, and I have worked in the fitness industry for 15 years, so I have seen at first hand the positive effect that good nutrition can have on people’s mental and physical health—it is absolutely massive. As the House will know, I am an extremely proud Swindonian and absolutely love Swindon—it is the best place in the world, though some might disagree—but there are some facts and statistics that I am less proud of.”
“I thank the Minister for his response. As an ex-rifleman, I have seen at first hand the negative impact of shoddy care and equipment on service personnel’s mental and physical health. What will installing an armed forces commissioner do to make their standard of living better?”
“A report came out two days ago suggesting that Northern Ireland’s economy was going to be stronger than that of the rest of the UK. Does that not have something to do with the Windsor framework, which is allowing businesses to invest in Northern Ireland? Surely that is a good thing.”
“We have one bus company, and in the urban area of Swindon we get it right—I do not get complaints from residents. Sometimes in Queens Drive I get a complaint about a double decker looking into a garden, but at least there is still a double decker going past. When I speak to rural residents, however, they often raise the point that they want and need to use public transport—it is good for their children and for accessing to education, hospitals and the town centre—but they simply cannot, and that is forcing them to use cars. I will keep my speech brief, because a lot of Members want to talk, but does the House not agree that if we are to incentivise people to ditch the car and get on public transport, we need an integrated transport system that focuses on rural areas to ensure we can get access to buses when we need them?”
“I thank the hon. Member for Glastonbury and Somerton (Sarah Dyke) for securing the debate. When I originally signed up to speak in it, it was about the south-west. I do not know what changed, but obviously national transport is very important. I feel that the south-west does sometimes get missed in conversations, but I hope that with the appointment of my right hon. Friend the Member for Swindon South (Heidi Alexander) as Transport Secretary that might change a little bit. After some of the speeches we have heard today, it will come as no shock to anyone that I am going to talk about rural transport and the need for integration. This issue is an odd one for me. My constituency has an urban area of Swindon, and then a rural area which includes Inglesham, Highworth, Blunsdon and Castle Eaton. The two areas are completely different.”
“Does the House agree that we need to do more to tackle toxic masculinity by people and influencers like Andrew Tate, because they are at the forefront of putting these ideas into the minds of young men?”
“As a result, Jean’s daughter Christine is unable to receive any compensation or recognition for her loss. I would be extremely grateful if the Paymaster General could look into this matter for me and have further discussions.”
“Within just over a week, her health had declined so rapidly that she was rushed to hospital, where her children, 17-year-old Kenneth and 15-year-old Christine, had to wear full protective gear just to visit her. By then, Jean was unable to recognise her children. Only 13 days after receiving that cut, she passed away at the age of just 39. Christine shared that story with me; it was truly heartbreaking, and brought a tear to my eye. Jean had contracted hepatitis B. The current support schemes focus only on those diagnosed with hepatitis C or HIV, leaving victims like Jean without the acknowledgment or the compensation that they deserve. The schemes were originally designed to address the most commonly identified infections, but they have unintentionally excluded people infected with hepatitis B.”
“I want to record my thanks to my right hon. Friend the Member for Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham (Dame Diana Johnson) and the right hon. Member for Salisbury (John Glen) for their tireless efforts in seeking justice for the victims of the infected blood scandal. The issue has had an impact on countless families, and I welcome the Government’s ongoing work to address it with the seriousness that it deserves. Today I want to share the story of Jean Anziani, the mother of one of my constituents. Jean was a nurse who came home with a cut on her hand after a patient struggled during a blood draw, causing the glass syringe to break.”
“Prosecutions and convictions for domestic abuse plummeted over the last eight years under the previous Government. Additionally, the time taken to charge domestic abuse cases has increased dramatically. Given the alarming rise in delays, what measures is the Solicitor General implementing to expedite those processes and ensure timely justice for victims?”
“7. What steps she is taking to ensure that the register of judgments, orders and fines in England and Wales is an effective tool for financially vulnerable claimants and debtors.”
“I am pleased to hear the Minister is moving forward with the next steps following the consultation. I would further like to congratulate the Minister on moving swiftly on this matter, especially as the consultation had been stalled since January. I hope that with care and attention, data protection for claimants will soon be able to be included in the register. Will the Minister also consider other updates to the register, such as recording partial settlements and shifting the burden of proof on debt satisfaction? That would really help my constituents in Swindon.”
“Many residents from Swindon North have contacted me expressing their concerns about Gaza. What steps is the Minister taking to help improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza?”
“As the Minister will know, one of the factors that can contribute to backlogs in courts is the existence of basic maintenance problems with the buildings, which prevents cases from being heard. In Swindon this year, we had a serious fire which resulted in one of the courtrooms being closed and cases being transferred elsewhere. What investment is being made in courts in places such as Swindon to ensure that justice can be delivered swiftly?”
“To finish, I am proud to be here representing such a fantastic group of people. It truly is the opportunity of a lifetime, so once again, I thank so much the people of Swindon North who have put their faith in me. I will not let them down.”
“Swindon, for all its qualities, is not without its fair share of challenges—challenges that I will face head on. Our people are among the least likely in the country to go on to higher education. We have growing levels of knife crime and antisocial behaviour, raw sewage being pumped into our streams and residents of large housing estates being affected by unjust management companies and fleecehold. However, I am confident that with our renewed Labour party and our ambitious agenda set out in the King’s Speech—whether that is recruiting and retaining teachers, increasing police presence on our streets, providing mental health professionals in schools or reforming leasehold and fleecehold—all backed and fully costed in a fiscally responsible Budget, the people of Swindon North will experience the positive change they deserve.”
“The people make Swindon what it is: a kind, welcoming, industrious place full of passion, innovation and a desire to support others, including strong local charities such as BEST, a charity at the forefront of tackling antisocial behaviour through mentoring and sports, the Kelly Foundation, which supports people suffering with mental health issues, and Changing Suits, which is breaking down barriers in diverse communities to ensure that people get the help they need. I want to say how proud I am of the residents in Swindon. We have seen tough times across the country, with riots sparked by division invading many communities, but they did not come to Swindon because in Swindon we know that diverse communities can stand strong together against extremism. We will not let division and hatred divide us; we will unite together and stand strong.”
“It is my mission to foster green growth in Swindon and see the town thrive again with high-skilled, well-paid jobs. I believe that in a growing, stable economy, we can see that happen. Swindon is not just famous for its high number of roundabouts—if anyone in the Chamber has ever visited, I am sure they will remember those fondly—as we have also had the pleasure of not one, but two James Bond movies being filmed in the town. It is impossible to talk about Swindon without mentioning its people.”