The speech made by Chris Webb, the Labour MP for Blackpool South, in the House of Commons on 13 May 2026.
I congratulate my hon. Friends the Members for Bradford West (Naz Shah) and for Harlow (Chris Vince) on two terrific speeches. I have to say that I am quite surprised to see my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow here without his London marathon medal around his neck, but I gently say, “Come back when you’ve done two of them, and then you can start talking”—[Interruption.] I’m not doing another one!
The lives of my constituents in Blackpool South may feel far removed from this place, but the legislation announced in the King’s Speech will impact them. For 14 years, Blackpool was the poster child for Government failure. My constituents have lived through the consequences of decisions made in this place. They have felt sharply the pressures of insecure work, poor housing, rising living costs and overstretched public services, and they have felt forgotten. But if Blackpool became an example of how badly politics can fail people, it can also be an example of what happens when this place gets it right. If the Government can turn around the fortunes of a town with the worst health outcomes, lowest wages and highest levels of deprivation in the country, there is nowhere that cannot succeed. When Blackpool succeeds, Britain succeeds.
When we talk about the cost of living crisis, we are not just talking about the price of a pint of milk or a loaf of bread. In Blackpool, we are experiencing food insecurity alongside debt, poor housing and an acute mental health crisis. Families already struggling to pay the rent are pushed further behind by insecure work and rising bills. These are not isolated problems, and there is no quick fix.
Legislation passed in this House matters so much in constituencies like mine. Strengthening employment rights, increasing the minimum wage, expanding free childcare provision and providing security to renters are all examples of the real difference being made right now to working families in Blackpool, but, with parents still skipping meals so that their children can eat, there is still much work to be done. I hope the legislation announced today will ease the pressure on working people, who have carried the burden of economic instability for far too long.
Energy security is part of the challenge too. The devastating conflict in Iran is having a growing impact across the world. For families in Blackpool who are already struggling to make ends meet, another spike in their bills is devastating. My constituents deserve the security of knowing that their energy supply is reliable and affordable, and the energy independence Bill will hopefully give them that.
I welcome the commitments to improve patient care and support early intervention through the NHS modernisation Bill, because health inequality remains one of the biggest injustices facing my constituents. People in Blackpool spend about a third of their lives in poor health, and the healthy life expectancy for men in my home town is 50 years old. My son was born in Blackpool, as was I, and this simple fact means that he and all the other children born in our town are expected to live 10 years less than a child born in Hampshire. That is 10 years stolen before they have even had the chance to live them. There is nothing inevitable about those figures; they are the result of political choices and years of inequality. NHS reform must be meaningful to improve outcomes and give people the chance to live longer and healthier lives.
Having visited schools across my constituency, met with the parents of SEND children and read hundreds of the responses to my constituency SEND survey, it is clear to me that the current system is not working for families in my constituency and beyond. Parents speak about fighting for support that should already be there. Schools are under enormous pressure, and children are waiting far too long for the help that they need. The funding secured earlier this year and the two new SEND schools in Blackpool are welcome, because they will mean that more children are getting support closer to home and that fewer families face months of uncertainty and delay. However, areas with the highest levels of need must receive support that reflects the reality in their area, because children growing up in Blackpool deserve the same opportunities as children growing up anywhere else in this country.
As the chair of the all-party parliamentary group for hospitality and tourism and the MP for a town built on tourism, I have followed discussions about the visitor levy closely. Tourism supports thousands of jobs in Blackpool and gives young people opportunities to join the jobs ladder, as was the case for me; I sold crisps and KitKats at the age of 14. The tourist pound reaches far beyond hotels and guest houses and supports pubs, cafés, restaurants, theatres, attractions and transport links across our area. Before the introduction of the overnight visitor levy Bill, the concerns of the sector must be taken seriously, because additional costs and burdens will hit them the hardest. If we are serious about supporting British tourism, I repeat my call for the Chancellor to reduce VAT for hospitality and tourism in line with other European countries.
Just under two years ago, when we were in opposition, I stood from the Opposition Benches to ask my first question as the MP for Blackpool South; I called for taxi licensing reform. Taxis are an essential part of Blackpool’s transport network, but the licensing scheme has failed both passengers and our local economy. We need reform so that local drivers are protected, passengers are safe and Blackpool gets the benefit of the revenue that is created in our town, instead of it leaving down the motorway at the end of each day. After a long campaign, I am delighted that the Government will take action that I have long campaigned for to modernise taxi and private hire laws. This Bill can finally address the issue of out-of-area working, protecting public safety and supporting local taxi revenue.
This place has the power to change the direction of my seaside town’s story and, in doing so, to change the story that Britain tells about itself. Let that be the challenge for this Labour Government. If we want the trust of the country, we must prove that we can rebuild places that were unfortunately written off too often by the previous Government. We must prove that prosperity does not belong only to the wealthiest postcodes and that working people, coastal towns and forgotten communities matter just as much as anywhere else in the United Kingdom. It will stand as proof that a different future is possible—one that is fairer, more hopeful and more equal—because, as I have said before, when Blackpool succeeds, Britain succeeds.