Well, Deputy Presiding Officer, I think in all the years that I've been in public life, I've never felt more inadequate in rising to my feet to take part in a debate, following that powerful speech from Jack Sargeant, because none of us can, of course, compare in experience or knowledge with him—tragic as it is that I have to say that. I've been touched by suicide tangentially, but never directly, and it is a terrible, terrible thing, made all the more powerful, I think, by the way in which Jack described the impact of this upon his family.

A very close friend of mine's wife, from university days, just before Christmas, committed suicide out of the blue, and I know what a devastating impact this has upon everybody around. Jack was absolutely right in saying that it affects not just the immediate family, but also the wider circle of friends as well. And it's difficult to imagine, actually, the black place that somebody is in, feeling so desperate that this is the only way out, and it touches everybody's hearts, I think, just even to think about it. And I've been in some black places in my life too. I've been falsely accused of sexual misdemeanours and found myself on the front pages of newspapers and the lead item in news bulletins,  and I know the pressure and impact that can have upon you. I was never tempted down the suicide route, but I have personally experienced a sense of loneliness and desperation, and I think it's that loneliness that lies at the heart of this whole problem. As Jack very well said, we need to look after each other in this respect. It's only when people feel that there is nobody to whom they can turn, for whatever reason—. I think Helen Mary Jones again hit a nail on the head in what she said particularly in respect of men, that we are—at least, certainly men of my generation—much too buttoned up. I find no difficulty in expressing myself in public, but I have to say, on emotionally related issues, I find the greatest difficulty in opening up in private, in circumstances where it would be to my benefit to do so. And I'm far from alone in that. So, it is vital that we do as much as we possibly can to take away what remaining stigma there is relating to suicide or suicidal thoughts. We've come a very long way since the Mental Health Act of 1959, before which anybody with some kind of mental illness was described officially as a moral and mental imbecile. There is, of course, a much greater understanding in society today than there was in the world into which I was born, but we still have a very, very long way to go, and Government has a very important role, I think, in this respect, and particularly, as Helen Mary pointed out, in respect of men. Indeed, Dai Lloyd, in his opening speech, also pointed out that middle-aged men in particular, we discovered—. I wasn't, sadly, a member of the committee when the evidence was taken, but I've read with great interest the report and a lot of the documents around it. There is a particular problem with men, and I think the more people of my generation are able to talk about it in public, then it may help somebody.

The roles of charities and the third sector in all of this is absolutely vital as well. In a world of family break-up, very often the man is forgotten about because women are overwhelmingly the victims of domestic violence, but men can sometimes also be the victims of domestic violence. Where families break up and children are taken away, then that also is often a cause of suicide amongst men, which perhaps needs more attention. I have had, as many Members have had, contact with a charity called Both Parents Matter, which has drawn this to my attention, which is why I mention it in the course of this debate today. It is important, without depreciating in any way the importance of looking after women in these circumstances, for us also to remember that men can sometimes be victims too. 

It is a tragedy and perhaps an indictment of society today that suicide is on the increase. It's a paradox, isn't it, that in a world of global communication and instant communication, and in an increasingly urbanised world, people can actually feel lonelier than ever? We have to do all that we can, every one of us in public life, to ensure that we reduce the stigma and maximise the help that can be given to people who are so desperate that they are tempted to take their own lives.