MP uses maiden speech to recall being homeless

Lee Pitcher won his seat by more than 2,300 votes

A new MP has used his maiden speech in Parliament to talk about how he spent part of his childhood homeless and his hopes that it "will never happen to a child again".

Lee Pitcher, Labour MP for Doncaster East and the Isle of Axholme, was made homeless alongside his mother and sister when he was 14 years old.

In his first address to the Commons on Thursday, he recalled sleeping on a mattress on the floor after losing the family home.

"That experience absolutely changed my life, and set a direction of travel for me to work hard, to do well, and to never ever want to see anyone in that same position again," he told Parliament.

Mr Pitcher won the seat, which was previously called Don Valley, after beating Conservative Nick Fletcher.

He polled 15,122 votes, beating Mr Fletcher by more than 2,300 votes.

Describing his first day as an MP, Mr Pitcher said: "A little lad who had nothing left to his name and was regularly bullied at school for the length of his trousers.

"I can tell you, there is nothing more stark, more devastating and actually more heartbreaking than seeing your mum's face, a very proud lady with a primary focus in life to look after her babies. She was working tirelessly but still lost the home that we lived in."

Speaking with his family in the public gallery above him, he said while those times "were rough", he was fortunate to have the "very best and most inspiring women as role models around me".

"And here I am today, July 18, on my 47th birthday, standing in the shadows of the greats, in this country that I love with every being, given the chance to make sure that I deliver that promise to myself and to my constituents, that that will never happen to a child again."

Pitcher served on Hatfield Town Council in Doncaster before being elected, and worked as a partnerships manager for Yorkshire Water.

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