Martin took part in the Business of the House Statement in Parliament today, raising the issue of suicide prevention, particularly in young and vulnerable people.
Martin raised this question following meetings he has had with the Samaritans charity. Martin is also working with the Samaritans on their ‘United with the frontline’ campaign, which aims to convince the Government to properly resource, support and train emergency responders in suicide prevention. In support of this campaign, Martin has written to Ministers responsible for police, fire and ambulance services, along with the local Police Chief Constable, Chief Fire Officer and Ambulance Trust Chief Executive.
You can read Martin’s contribution to the debate below:
Turning to my own question to the Leader of the House, yesterday—I am sure along with many other Members—I attended the drop-in session organised by Samaritans and the Centre for Countering Digital Hate. I was shown the template letters produced by AI that, in effect, encourage particularly young and vulnerable people to consider suicide, which is an appalling state of affairs. I recognise that Ministers are looking at all aspects of the digital world and so on, but I am sure the whole House agrees that we must take urgent action to combat this. I hope the Leader of the House will arrange a statement by a Minister on how the Government intend approaching it.
