Adam Dance
MP for Yeovil · Liberal Democrat · United Kingdom
“I have heard from far too many worried victims and parents of young victims in Yeovil about how much anxiety the potential early release of their offenders, including members of child grooming gangs, has caused.”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Access to assistive technology is another huge issue. Only 18% of young people surveyed by the British Dyslexia Association had access to assistive technology. Does the hon.”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Flooding in Somerset is a huge issue. One of the care homes in my constituency flooded last year within seconds. Yes, the Government have given Somerset a lot more money towards tackling flooding, but that does not go far enough. What else can the Government do to support rural Somerset in being ready for flooding this year?”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The Government are currently piloting assistive technology lending libraries. Will the Minister update us on that trial and whether it can expanded to more rural areas such as Somerset that do not have mayors so that kids do not have to miss out and schools are not ripped off on assistive technology by private companies?”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Susie from Chard put it best when she recently spoke out after losing her cat Tigs to a car collision last year: “It just cannot be right that in 2026 the law allows cats to be hit by cars and left alone, scared and in pain on the roadside”. She is absolutely right.”
House of Commons26 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thank my constituents who signed the petition or who wrote to me about the issue. It goes without saying that we are a country of animal lovers, and that while no law requires drivers to report a cat’s death on our roads, they should look to find a way to inform the owners if they are responsible for a collision.”
House of Commons26 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
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“Access to assistive technology is another huge issue. Only 18% of young people surveyed by the British Dyslexia Association had access to assistive technology. Does the hon. Member agree that, just like diagnosis support, assistive technology should be available not just for those lucky enough to be in well-off urban areas or for those who can afford to pay private providers huge sums?”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The Government are currently piloting assistive technology lending libraries. Will the Minister update us on that trial and whether it can expanded to more rural areas such as Somerset that do not have mayors so that kids do not have to miss out and schools are not ripped off on assistive technology by private companies?”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I have heard from far too many worried victims and parents of young victims in Yeovil about how much anxiety the potential early release of their offenders, including members of child grooming gangs, has caused. Probation services in rural areas are on their knees, so will the Minister tell victims in Yeovil what work has been done with probation services in the south-west to ensure they have all the personnel, resources and systems in place to safely manage the release of offenders to our communities?”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Flooding in Somerset is a huge issue. One of the care homes in my constituency flooded last year within seconds. Yes, the Government have given Somerset a lot more money towards tackling flooding, but that does not go far enough. What else can the Government do to support rural Somerset in being ready for flooding this year?”
House of Commons27 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The Government told me in their response last year that they would publish the conclusion of a research project on the challenges preventing some cats from being reunited with their keepers after road traffic incidents. I followed up a month later to ask when we could expect to see that research, but I was told that it is undergoing review—basically, “It will be published when it is ready, so go away.” I have not heard or seen anything since, so I would appreciate it if the Minister provided us with an update on those findings, and what action the Government have taken as a result. Pets are our family, and no should be left uncertain about the wellbeing of their family.”
House of Commons26 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Susie from Chard put it best when she recently spoke out after losing her cat Tigs to a car collision last year: “It just cannot be right that in 2026 the law allows cats to be hit by cars and left alone, scared and in pain on the roadside”. She is absolutely right. She is also right to point out that, ultimately, we need more preventive measures. Microchipping is great, but we need to look carefully at other measures such as speed controls in residential areas, signage and many more. Without doubt, however, although legislation is easy, to enforce reporting is not. It might seem obvious, but cats are smaller than the animals that have to be reported, they are usually out and about at dawn or dusk, and drivers of larger vehicles may not notice a collision. I still do not think that any of that is an excuse to do nothing.”
House of Commons26 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thank my constituents who signed the petition or who wrote to me about the issue. It goes without saying that we are a country of animal lovers, and that while no law requires drivers to report a cat’s death on our roads, they should look to find a way to inform the owners if they are responsible for a collision. At least, that is what the Government told me when I asked them about the issue more than a year ago. That missed the point, however; unfortunately, just because they should, does not mean that everyone will. Whether cats or dogs, pets are loved members of the family for many in our communities. I am a pet owner myself, and there is no worse feeling than not knowing where one’s pet is and whether they are okay. I have an AirTag on my pet, just to make sure I can keep a closer eye.”
House of Commons26 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“That cannot be allowed to go on any more.”
House of Commons21 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We also need proper education campaigns on this—and by that, I do not just mean giving schools more work to do; we need something on the scale of the THINK! campaign, particularly on social media. In Parliament, we need to push for clearer legislation, because the current legal framework for e-bikes is confusing, outdated and rarely enforced. Most importantly, Government need to crack down properly on the supply chain and unregulated online marketplaces that are flooding our streets with these illegal vehicles. To get anywhere in Somerset, you pretty much have to drive. That means road tax, insurance and sticking to the rules. People in Yeovil are rightly angry that these people on illegal e-bikes and e-scooters and those who sell them do none of those things, put people at risk and get away with it.”
House of Commons21 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Carol has been telling me how she keeps seeing people on modified e-bikes travelling at speed down Middle Street in the wrong direction, dodging pedestrians. Nicki told me it is unsafe to take her seven-year-old nephew to the park because kids are crashing up and down on e-scooters. Katriana has told me about the near-misses involving dogs, young children and the elderly. Just the other day, I was out canvassing, and three lads shot past me on e-scooters in balaclavas shouting abuse at other residents. It is just a matter of time before someone gets really badly hurt—including the people riding these vehicles, as we have heard today. It goes without saying that we need our police to carry out focused enforcement interventions. We need intervention from the Government in the form of training and funding.”
House of Commons21 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Epsom and Ewell (Helen Maguire) for securing this debate and for all the campaigning she has been doing on this important issue. Illegally modified e-bikes and e-scooters have become more and more of a problem in Yeovil. Peter lives on Sherborne Road, which is a very busy road out of Yeovil. He is always very careful when he crosses, and he always sticks to the pavement; but for Peter, pavements have become just as dangerous as roads. Not for the first time, he was left one step away from A&E after someone came crashing by on an e-scooter doing 30 mph. Sadly, Peter is not alone. The problem is not just one or two troublemakers in Yeovil; this is happening at scale across our communities, and it often comes with other forms of antisocial behaviour.”
House of Commons21 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The hon. Member is giving a great speech. One of my constituents has not received post for an entire month, despite expecting time-sensitive correspondence relating to the death of her partner, who sadly passed away earlier this year. That is totally unacceptable. Does the hon. Member agree that Ofcom needs to be pushing Royal Mail to speed up improvements to regulated delivery? Our residents have waited long enough.”
House of Commons21 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“That sums up the terrible situation that so many farmers in Yeovil and across the country are facing—extreme weather from heatwaves and flooding, the spiralling costs of fertiliser, fuel and equipment, and growing biosecurity threats from bluetongue and tuberculosis. When we throw in terrible Government policy, that is a perfect storm waiting to happen. In the time I have, I will touch on a few issues that have been raised a lot at my farming forum. First, on sustainable farming, while DEFRA is saying that it has learned lessons for next time, farmers including Tim, Chris, John and Ollie and many more want to know whether they are going to get recognised for implementing sustainable farming practices now.”
House of Commons21 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The absolute shambles that was window 2 of the SFI is just another example of farmers being let down by Government after Government. I have already mentioned this in the Chamber, but Tim, who farms near Yeovil, was locked out of the SFI window 2 on the same day that he was given the water quality farmer of the year award. You could not make it up, Madam Deputy Speaker. Tim, and many farmers like him in Yeovil, are now left in a financial hole. He said that the buffer strips around fields would now have to be cultivated in the hope of making some money, as long as the weather, markets and business costs all play ball. It is clear that he is gambling with terrible odds, but as Tim told me, what other choice does he have?”
House of Commons21 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Finally, farmers from Yeovil are really worried about the future of farming more broadly. We have an ageing workforce and a recruitment crisis, so what steps are the Government taking to promote pathways into farming for young people and reduce the financial and admin burdens that are currently stopping farmers being able to take on young people? If this new Government really are committed to problem solving, I can think of no better place to start than farming. We all know the problems; it is time to finally get on with the actual work and support our farmers.”
House of Commons21 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I totally agree with my hon. Friend—they cannot seem to get it right, and they are failing our farmers across the country. Lots of farmers are saying that their only option now is intensive farming. That is really worrying for us in south Somerset as winter comes around and it begins to flood, because our farmers are the frontline when it comes to preventing ever-worsening flooding. More broadly, as we have already heard, farmers need more clarity about how the SFI and other schemes are going to develop in the future, so that they can plan ahead. Secondly, farmers hit by bluetongue and TB want to know what more Government are doing to improve our readiness and communication systems for future outbreaks. I hope the Minister can set out when the Government will bring in the new TB strategy.”
House of Commons21 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Because SFI window 2 funding closed within hours, many Yeovil farmers were shut out, despite being prepared. That included Tim, who was awarded Water Quality Farmer of the Year on literally the same day. Does the Minister recognise that even farmers awarded for environmentally-friendly land management are now being left in a financial hole? What are the Government going to do to encourage sustainable farming in Yeovil?”
House of Commons15 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Yeovil’s new police station will not have a custody unit, after it was shut under the Conservatives, because years of under-investment in Avon and Somerset police means there is not enough money or staff, so officers have to keep wasting hours a day going to Bridgwater station. Will the Leader of the House make time for a debate on the need to give rural police forces like Avon and Somerset a fairer funding boost, so we can get a custody suite back in Yeovil?”
House of Commons15 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I welcome the Minister’s statement—there was a lot of good in there—but if we are not getting a national care service in this Parliament, what steps will the Government take now to ensure continuity of social care across local authority borders? One constituent’s mother moved from Dorset to a care home near her family in Somerset. They sought support from the council, because their personal funds were running out. Sadly, the constituent’s mother passed away before the complex dispute over which council should pay was ever resolved.”
House of Commons15 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“There is real scope for improved oversight of NHS trusts such as ours in Somerset. Ultimately, however, without Government support and funding, we will not be able to improve our NHS services.”
House of Commons14 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“That is why we need Government oversight—specifically, a review of stroke services in rural areas, focusing on the evidence and the consultation process around service provision, health outcomes for patients and travel times. We need a proper national picture of how rural areas are being impacted by service restructures and mergers, because what works for Bristol or London will not always work for south Somerset and other rural areas. Sadly, I have heard really concerning reports of bullying and poor work culture across our entire NHS trust. That is why I believe the Government urgently need to improve oversight of working cultures and tackle bullying in NHS trusts. That should start with training for leadership teams across NHS trusts on bullying. Where there is poor performance, working culture is often a key factor.”
House of Commons14 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Local campaigners and I kept being told that there was a strong evidence base to suggest that a restructure would improve the service, but when we made a freedom of information request we found data suggesting that, in 2024, if stroke patients from Yeovil had been taken to Taunton, only 13% would have made it within the target call-to-needle time of 180 minutes, while only 30% would have made it to hospital in Dorchester in time. We have been working with the NHS in Somerset to get things such as pre-hospital video triage, to help to cut waiting times, and a refurbished acute stroke unit at Yeovil hospital, but we are still really concerned about travel times and outcomes.”
House of Commons14 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We got Government oversight, as Baroness Amos reviewed our trust’s maternity services during the closure, and she concluded that “from the evidence we collected during our visits and the concerns expressed by staff, we remain concerned about patient safety at Yeovil District Hospital.” I am hearing that concern too, so I really want to hear from the Minister about the particular steps being taken now to improve oversight and support patient safety and staff in rural maternity units. Another priority issue for people in Yeovil is stroke services. After targets were not met, the NHS in Somerset closed Yeovil’s hyper-acute stroke unit as part of a service restructure. Patients will now have to travel to hospitals in Taunton or Dorchester.”
House of Commons14 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Thank you, Mr Stuart. I also thank my hon. Friend the Member for Chelmsford (Marie Goldman) for securing this debate. Despite the hard work of staff, the performance of my NHS trust, from maternity services to stroke care, has been at the forefront of people’s minds because of underperformance. Since the merger, Yeovil hospital has been the poor relation. Thankfully, we managed to get our maternity unit in Yeovil safely reopened after a CQC report found serious failings and the trust closed the unit.”
House of Commons14 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Those working in hospitality across Yeovil have told me that a tourism tax will impact jobs, growth and our high streets. We want to encourage tourism in our area, not decrease it. What steps is the Minister taking to strengthen support for rural hospitality, and will he meet me and representatives of the sector to talk about how we can boost tourism in rural Somerset? We need a commitment that local residents and businesses will be consulted before any decision is made.”
House of Commons15 September 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Residents in rural parts of Yeovil continue to raise concerns with me about the rising cost of domestic heating oil due to conflicts abroad. Prices have sometimes hit as much as £1.10 a litre. As the nights draw in and winter comes around, what steps will the Government take to develop a price cap for heating oil? Just giving money to local authorities is not good enough; it does not support everyone.”
House of Commons15 September 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“As the hon. Member knows, small abattoirs are at breaking point in almost every imaginable way. One big issue is contradicting and inconsistent inspections. Does he agree that the Government urgently need to set out a clearer plan to streamline the regulation system?”
House of Commons14 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“My hon. Friend is making a fantastic speech. Does he agree that as well as defibrillators, there should be bleed kits in the back of police cars? Yeovil town council has introduced bleed kits across the town, as well as defibrillators. Does he agree that we need both in police vehicles?”
House of Commons8 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“AI is increasingly being used to make cutting-edge assistive technology for people with special educational needs and disabilities, but the industry is a bit of a wild west, and access for young people in areas such as Yeovil is uneven. Will the hon. Member join me in urging the Government to publish guidance for schools on best practices for AI assistive technology for SEND?”
House of Commons8 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“My constituency neighbour will know that in Somerset and Dorset, we get older models of buses no longer used elsewhere. At the same time, rural bus depots, such as the one in Yeovil, are closing. If a bus breaks down from Ilchester on the way to Dorchester, passengers have to wait over an hour for a replacement bus. Does my hon. Friend agree that if depots for repairs are going to be closed, we need newer buses in West Dorset and Yeovil?”
House of Commons8 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“My biggest concern is that we have no electric buses in Yeovil. There is nowhere to charge them because other depots have been shut down. How will we cope with an electric future if First Bus is closing depots?”
House of Commons8 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“One of my relatives went into hospital to get intravenous antibiotics but later died in that hospital due to being stuck there. She was ready to move on to a community hospital, but she gave up because she was scared in the hospital—they did not keep an eye on her, she fell out of bed and cracked her head open, and she later passed away. Does the hon. Lady agree that we need a lot more investment in social care to ensure that does not happen and our relatives do not have to go into hospital in the first place?”
House of Commons8 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The hon. Member is making a fantastic speech. On the topic of staff, one of the biggest problems in Yeovil hospital is bullying culture, as we saw in the Baroness Amos report in relation to maternity. Does the hon. Member believe that staff should be free to speak up without the worry of losing their job?”
House of Commons8 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to put pressure on the Post Office to ensure a replacement operator for the post office in the area is in place before the current site is closed; and to consider how to provide communities with more resilient in-person services. And the petitioners remain, etc.] [P003221]”
House of Commons8 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The petitioners therefore request “that the House of Commons urges the Government to put pressure on the Post Office to ensure a replacement operator for the post office in the area is in place before the current site is closed; and to consider how to provide communities with more resilient in-person services.” Following is the full text of the petition: [The petition of residents of the United Kingdom, Declares that an alternative operator for the Hundredstone Post Office site in the Morrisons Daily on Glenthorne Avenue in Yeovil must be provided before the store ’ s closure 29 July 2026; and further declares that the current model for local services, whereby bank services often operate in post offices and post offices often operate in shops, means that local people lose almost all of their in-person services when shops, as is often the case in the current business and regulatory environment, don ’ t survive.”
House of Commons8 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“After amazing campaigners secured more than 900 signatures, I present this petition on the closure of the Hundredstone post office in Yeovil, which will leave locals with no in-person post office and banking services.”
House of Commons8 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Another constituent’s elderly mother had debts run up by an estranged relative, who used her details to the extent that bailiffs came round. Another constituent was tricked into investing hundreds of thousands of pounds into a building company that then shut down. Lots of constituents have been defrauded out of thousands of pounds by tradespeople for half-done work or work that never actually happened.”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I beg to move, That this House has considered the potential merits of increasing fraud protections and the Fraud Strategy 2026 to 2029. It is a pleasure to lead this debate with you in the Chair, Mrs Harris, and I thank the Minister for being here. Fraud has been spreading like the plague for years, infecting almost every aspect of daily life: online, on the phone, at work or out and about. People do not know who or what to trust. Fraud costs the UK economy more than £1 billion a year, yet sentencing is well below its 2010 level. In 2025, British consumers lost £1.2 billion to fraud—a four-year high. What does that rise mean? My constituent’s small business in Ilton was scammed out of more than £3,000worth of orders through a credit card scam, wiping out their business.”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“They are good things and I will come on to them later, but we do need more support for vulnerable adults and young people—something I will also come on to.”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I agree with some of what the hon. Gentleman said, and I will come on to talk about why banks should have more face-to-face contact with people instead of sending them online. It is even simple, little things. One constituent was scammed into paying a clean air zone charge, which does not exist, because it popped up on a sponsored page on Google. Another agreed to send Amazon vouchers to their elderly mother, but they actually sent them to a scammer. In April, in response to this problem, the Government came forward with the 2026 to 2029 fraud strategy. They have committed £250 million to the plan over the next three years. There is a lot to welcome in the strategy, particularly the establishment of the fraud victims charter and the new Report Fraud scheme to replace Action Fraud, which was totally useless.”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Jason and other veterans have been fighting for the Financial Conduct Authority to fully regulate the property training industry across the UK. Jason is not the only one, and I have heard from many people who have been drawn into this. The Government also need to investigate the practices and impact of the broader influencer wealth creation industry. It is not just veterans, and if we do nothing, more and more vulnerable people will be ripped off. It is no overstatement to say that we are fighting a war with fraudsters. For far too long they have been one step ahead. I hope that the Minister will be able to address the issues we have raised today and will commit to setting up a meeting with me and her ministerial colleagues, so that we can talk in more detail about these cases.”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Sadly, others felt they could not find a way out, like Danny Butcher, who took his own life and in whose name a foundation has been set up, of which Jason is a trustee. The fraud strategy does not give us much on how to deal with cases like that, where people are clearly being taken advantage of and misled, but where proving fraud is a challenge. I hope the Minister will commit to looking into how measures in the strategy can be used to investigate these types of practices. What we urgently need is proper protections and warnings on social media about the risks posed by this industry. We already have warnings in place for gambling and social media. We even provide warning labels for public service broadcasts. Why can we not do that for wealth creation influencers?”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“That is especially true when we consider that far too many of our veterans are facing hardship that, according to Trussell, means that they are twice as likely to run out of food than those who have not served. In reality, the training courses do not deliver the skills and high-figure salaries promised. Instead, people get basic technology and mindset training. The people running these schemes know that what they offer is absolutely rubbish, but they will convince people to invest in more sessions and to recruit others until they are trapped. Jason ended up spending over £20,000 on training. It got so bad that he even considered taking his own life. Thankfully, Jason is with us and has turned things around. He is now working a fantastic job and has completed an Ironman to raise awareness and money for his community.”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Christopher should not have been able to take out those loans without it being flagged. The second case that I want to raise is that of Jason, a veteran who served in the Navy. He has come up from Somerset to sit in the Public Gallery today—welcome, Jason. Jason was a victim of wealth creation and property investment schemes run by trainers who styled themselves as social media influencers and targeted veterans and military personnel. These influencers promote themselves and their lifestyle online. They then go to veterans such as Jason, bigging up their military background to build trust. The combination of slick social media, a background that people think they can trust and the promise of training courses that offer financial freedom can be pretty convincing.”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Banks’ fraud protection systems rely on automated texts or AI, which the fraud strategy continues to support as a key safeguard, but that is not good enough for someone with communication challenges or learning difficulties. Christopher’s therapist faced endless barriers in trying to get in contact with Lloyds; they were turned away from the branches and told to go online. We need clarity from the Minister about how the Government will work with the banks to ensure that their safeguards are accessible for people with neurodiversity and disabilities. Will the fraud victims charter establish a right for vulnerable people to access in-person specialised support in bank branches or banking hubs? We also need clear routes for therapists and support providers to flag concerns to financial services and the police.”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“He was convinced to travel to Hungary to buy a property for them to live in. He invested £70,000 in a property that was never transferred to him. After that, he was persuaded to purchase a rundown property in Yeovil and was misled into joining a property scheme that he could not afford. He ended up taking on loans to manage his debt. My team and I managed to get him the £70,000 back from Lloyds after his therapist reached out to us, but that case raises serious questions about how effective protections are for the most vulnerable people. About 7% of the population have DLD, and many more have other forms of learning difficulties, which can make them just as vulnerable, so we are not talking about a small number of people.”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Will the Government give Ofcom a hard deadline to implement the fraud advertising codes of practice, which would set out rules for ads online? We could talk for hours and hours about the different types of protection that need to be in place, but sadly for me—and luckily for everyone else—we do not have hours, so I will focus on the cases of two constituents and the questions about safeguarding that they raise. Christopher lives with developmental language disorder and struggles to produce or retain complex information. He is very agreeable and is known to give consent even if he does not really understand, which makes him incredibly vulnerable. He was targeted by romance fraudsters, who misled him, largely online, into believing that he was in a romantic relationship with one of their gang.”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“How will current approaches be improved to reach more people and be more effective, given that fraud cases are still on the rise? Another glaring issue is that the strategy provides no changes to the current system of largely voluntary charters and Ofcom oversight of social media and tech platforms to prevent fraud. Two thirds of authorised UK financial fraud last year happened on social media. In fact, through things like paid advertising, these companies could be making a profit from fraud on their platforms. It is not good enough, so why are the Government and Ofcom not doing more? The Online Safety Act 2023 gives us tools to fine social media companies for not reducing harm, but will they be properly used? Will the Minister commit to push Ofcom to prioritise fraud enforcement?”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Despite that, there are still some real challenges with the strategy. The big question is whether, given the scale of the problem, £250 million is enough. Will we be able to afford the technology and the workforce to keep up with fraudsters? Is the strategy fully costed, or will we find ourselves in a situation like that of the defence investment plan, for which the money just is not enough? I know for a fact that we do not have enough police officers to do outreach to all the people vulnerable to fraud in Yeovil and south Somerset. Given that we are losing billions to fraud, surely it would be a smart move to invest a bit more in fighting it. The expansion of awareness campaigns such as “Stop! Think Fraud” is great, but what are the challenges to that?”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I totally agree that Scotland should join, because we should work together against fraudsters, not in isolation or silos. Short of catching the fraudsters themselves, my constituents who were defrauded provided every scrap of evidence that they or their businesses could, but they were all told by Action Fraud that there was no line of inquiry. I welcome the strong start on international co-operation and the introduction of an online crime centre, a new abuse taskforce and more data-driven policing. If properly supported, that work could help us to take a proactive approach to addressing the types of fraud that my constituents were victims of. Will the Minister look into whether the cases that Action Fraud failed to follow up can be reopened with those new systems in place? Lots of my constituents are still out of pocket.”
House of Commons7 July 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗