Jim Shannon

It is a real pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Huq. I give special thanks to the hon. Member for Sheffield Hallam (Olivia Blake); this debate is so important—that is why we are all here—and she set the scene incredibly well. She was a sponsor of early-day motion 1317, which called for greater protection for children suffering from poverty, and she has debated these issues before. I say to her with all honesty that I think her constituents should be extremely proud of her record in this House, including this debate and others that she has been involved in. Across this United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and further across the world, poverty is a heartbreaking and very sad reality faced by too many children and families. Child poverty is extensive, with parents doing their absolute best to make ends meet in a world in which tough decisions must be made in order to survive, given the extreme costs of daily essentials. The hon. Member for Aberdeen North (Kirsty Blackman), in her contribution, told some graphic stories of what mothers have to do to survive and feed their children; she too set the scene very well. The fact that people feel that they must take those steps to protect their children gives us an idea of their desperation. Again, she set the scene so well. We of course acknowledge the pressures on migrant parents living in poverty, and I believe we have a responsibility to protect migrants with children who come here legally. There is no constituency across this United Kingdom that has not experienced elements of poverty. I will give some stats from Northern Ireland to add to the debate. The figures are staggering, but they give some background to the scale of the situation. Official data indicates that a substantial number of children in my Strangford constituency live in poverty, and in 16 of the 18 constituencies in Northern Ireland more than 20% live in relative poverty. That tells us the impact in this great United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: we have comparatively high levels of wealth, but 20% of children in Northern Ireland still live in poverty. The stats also show that child poverty in Northern Ireland has increased in recent years, with relative poverty rising from 18% to 24% between 2021 and 2023. Poverty has significant consequences for child development. We often say—the Minister has probably said this in the past—that children who do not have a decent meal to start their day have restricted physical and mental capacity to engage in the classroom and with their friends, and missing meals leads to poor health outcomes. When it comes to the development of a child, it is really important that meals are available; where they are not, it causes educational difficulties and increases mental health problems too. In the past few years of my life as an elected representative, I have been incredibly shocked by the stats on mental health conditions in children. I find it incomprehensible. It is hard to gauge why it is happening. The fact that children as young as eight have mental health problems tells me that there is a real need to help those children and parents directly. Parents are being made to choose between a warm home and a warm meal. No parent should be left to make that choice. The statistics have remained stagnant. My constituency office deals with these issues weekly, and that tells me where we are. I am glad that MPs are able to help, but we can only do so because of the organisations on hand to help people. I have a wonderful relationship and partnership with the churches, organisations and food banks in my constituency, which I have built on over the years. They help people regardless of age, nationality and immigration status. Within minutes of a quick phone call, the food bank in Newtownards makes sure the family has what they need. Sometimes we go and collect it, sometimes they deliver it and sometimes the person is able to get somebody else to go and get it. The main thing is that we have an organisation that can help, and we are really indebted to it.