Theresa May MP
We’ve fact checked Theresa May 101 times. Since 2022, we’ve asked her to correct the record once. Join others in her constituency of Maidenhead to ask her to stand up for honesty in public life.
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We’ve fact checked Theresa May 101 times
Full Fact scrutinises claims made by politicians on all sides of political debate. We prioritise claims that have the potential to cause most harm.
Our team isn’t able to monitor and fact check all claims made by every politician, so this list isn’t exhaustive. It isn’t accurate to use these examples to draw comparisons about the overall behaviour of individual MPs or political parties.
The asylum backlog is far higher now than when Labour left government
If she thinks that the current figure means that the system is in chaos, what is her description of the system under the Labour Government of which she was a member, which had a backlog in asylum cases of between 400,000 and 450,000?
Theresa May, 13 March 2023
UK greenhouse gas emissions: fast progress but not yet enough to meet future targets
“We have made huge progress in growing our economy and the jobs market while slashing emissions”
Theresa May, 12 June 2019
UK-US trading and investment: a special relationship
“Our trading relationship is worth over £190 billion a year, and we are the largest investors in each other’s economies, with mutual investments valued at as much as $1 trillion.”
Theresa May, 4 June 2019
GP numbers: up or down?
“There are actually more GPs in the NHS today than there were in 2015.”
Theresa May, 8 May 2019
Prime Minister’s pension claims don’t adjust for inflation
What we have seen under Conservatives in government is the basic state pension rise by over £1,450 per year.
Theresa May, 3 April 2019
The EU referendum wasn’t quite the largest democratic exercise in UK history
“If you look back to what happened in the referendum, we saw the biggest democratic exercise in our history.”
Theresa May, 22 March 2019
NHS England: £394 million more a week?
“When we leave the EU we won’t be sending, you know, the vast amounts of money to the EU every year that we do at the moment. That means we will have money to spend on priorities like the NHS… We’ve set out that we’ll be putting more money into the NHS over the next five years, and it will mean £394 million more a week more going into our National Health Service.”
Theresa May, 16 November 2018
Real wages aren’t growing at their fastest rate in a decade
First, absolute poverty is in fact at a low, and we have seen in the figures that came out earlier this week that real wages have been growing faster recently than at any time in the past decade, so the hon. Lady's portrayal of this country is not fair.
Theresa May, 15 November 2018
The government should stop saying there are 1.9 million more children in good or outstanding schools
“1.9 million more children are now in good and outstanding schools, compared with 2010, and part of that is the result of the reforms we have made to education”.
Theresa May, 10 October 2018
Does the ‘Brexit dividend’ exist?
"We must fund [the £20 billion boost to NHS spending]. That will be through the Brexit dividend. The fact we are no longer sending vast amounts of money every year to the EU once we leave the EU. As a country we will be contributing a bit more.”
Theresa May, 17 June 2018
Are pay packets growing?
“And as my honourable Friend says, the news that real wages are up means more money in people’s pockets under the Conservatives.”
Theresa May, 16 May 2018
Affordable homes: comparing Labour and Conservative records
Since we came into office in 2010, we have delivered more affordable homes than the previous Labour Government did in their last seven years in office
Theresa May, 25 April 2018
Labour and Conservative council tax: who costs you more?
If the hon. Gentleman worries about what is happening at local council level, he ought to look at the figures that have come out today, which show very clearly that if you live in an area where the council is run by the Labour party, you pay £100 more than under the Conservatives.
Theresa May, 28 March 2018
A&E performance: England v Wales
"The latest annual data on 12-hour waits in A&E show that 3.4% of patients waited more than 12 hours in Wales compared with 1.3% in England. If he wants to talk about meeting targets, he should talk to the Labour Government in Wales."
Theresa May, 14 March 2018
Small businesses and Brexit
“I refer him to what the Federation of Small Businesses said about our position: “The UK small business community sees the potential wins of an independent global trade policy… We want trade kept as easy as possible with the EU 27”—that is our position—“small businesses are pushing to export to new growth areas—the US, English-speaking nations, emerging economies and the Commonwealth.”
Theresa May, 28 February 2018
How many PFI contracts did the last Labour government sign with Carillion?
"A third of the Carillion contracts with the Government were let by the Labour government.”
Theresa May, 17 January 2018
Did a Labour-run council sign a PFI contract with Carillion in December?
"Actually we see that the Labour run-Welsh Government issued a contract [to Carillion] after the profit warning last July, and only last week a public sector body announced that Carillion was its preferred bidder [...] it was Labour run Leeds City Council."
Theresa May, 17 January 2018
How diverse is the government?
"This government is about building a country fit for the future… This reshuffle helps us do just that by bringing fresh talent into government… and ensuring the government looks more like the country it serves."
Theresa May, 9 January 2018
Is the NHS recruiting enough new GPs?
“We are seeing more GPs, we are seeing more training places for our GPs.”
Theresa May, 20 December 2017
Is house building at record levels?
“Last year we saw 217,000 more homes being built in this country. That is a record—apart from one year—that is a record for the last 30 years.”
Theresa May, 13 December 2017
A&E waiting times: are they getting longer?
“On the NHS, can we say, there are 1,800 more patients seen within the four hour A&E standard every single day, compared to 2010.”
Theresa May, 15 November 2017
How much has the government recouped from tax evasion and avoidance?
“We have taken action collectively as a Government over the last few years since 2010 when we first came in, and we have secured almost £160 billion in additional compliance revenues since 2010”
Theresa May, 1 November 2017
Do the top 1% of earners pay 28% of the tax burden?
"The top 1% of earners in this country are paying 28% of the tax burden. That is the highest percentage ever, under any Government."
Theresa May, 1 November 2017
Does the government spend £50 billion on debt interest payments?
“Today we spend nearly £50 billion in payments on interest to those we have borrowed from as a result of the legacy of the Labour party. That is more than the NHS pay bill, it is more than our schools budget, more than we spend on defence, as a result of the record we were left by Labour in government”
Theresa May, 1 November 2017
Are more people being paid an advance on their Universal Credit?
“The figures show that the performance in getting payments to people on time has improved substantially, and more people are getting advanced payments.”
Theresa May, 18 October 2017
UK economy; what was the OECD's verdict?
The OECD says about the United Kingdom: we have the most efficient, accessible healthcare system, fiscal sustainability has improved, important steps have been taken to improve educational outcomes, and jobs and earnings are good. That’s what the OECD says about the strong economy under this Conservative government.
Theresa May, 18 October 2017
Were 1.4 million stuck on out-of-work benefits under Labour?
“But let's just think about the Labour party's record on this whole issue of welfare. Under the Labour party 1.4 million people spent most of the last decade trapped on out of work benefits.”
Theresa May, 11 October 2017
Is Universal Credit being paid on time?
“At the beginning of this year only 55% of people were getting their first payment on time now that is over 80%.”
Theresa May, 11 October 2017
The number of detentions under the Mental Health Act is rising
“Detention rates under the Mental Health Act are too high. And it is people from black and minority ethnic populations who are affected the most.”
Theresa May, 4 October 2017
Have some police officers had a 32% pay rise?
“Indeed, a calculation suggests that a new police officer in 2010, thanks to progression pay and annual basic salary increases, and the increase in the personal allowance that is a tax cut for people, have actually seen an increase in their pay of over £9,000 since 2010, a real terms increase of 32%.”
Theresa May, 13 September 2017
Disabled people in work
“Over the time that we have been in government we have been seeing more disabled people get into the workplace”
Theresa May, 13 September 2017
Executive pay: power to the shareholders?
“It’s Conservatives that gave shareholders the power to veto pay policies.”
Theresa May, 6 September 2017
How many Nobel Prizes has the UK won?
“We have more Nobel Prize winners than any country outside of the United States”
Theresa May, 6 September 2017
Income tax cuts for basic rate payers
“...we have taken millions of people out of paying income tax altogether [and] basic rate taxpayers under this government have seen a tax cut equivalent of £1,000”
Theresa May, 19 July 2017
Has the NHS been judged the best healthcare system in the world?
“The NHS [is] once again —because this isn't the first time—the number one health system in the world.”
Theresa May, 19 July 2017
Have concerns been raised in the past about key fire safety laws?
“In 2005, it was a Labour Government who introduced the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order … this was commented on in the report on the Lakanal House fire; it criticised that 2005 order, which had been put in place by the Labour government.”
Theresa May, 28 June 2017
Can you be in the single market without being an EU member?
"You can't be a member of the single market without effectively still being a member of the European Union."
Theresa May, 18 May 2017
Has the SNP ever been fined for election spending mistakes?
“If you look at the expenses issue, we have seen all the major parties and the Scottish nationalists being fined for mistakes made on national expenses.”
Theresa May, 10 May 2017
Are NHS workers getting a 4% pay rise?
“I see today that he is talking about paying for extra wage increases in the NHS, I think we should first of all recognise actually that for people working in the NHS around half of those staff, because of progression and basic pay increases will actually see on average a pay increase of 4%.”
Theresa May, 26 April 2017
Labour's affordable housing record
“The number of social rented homes under a Labour government fell by 420,000.”
Theresa May, 26 April 2017
Pensions under Labour and the Conservatives
“If [Jeremy Corbyn] wants to talk about pensions and pensioners looking to the future, then once again there will be a very clear choice at this election. A clear choice between a Labour party who in government saw the increase in basic state pension of 75p in one year, and a Conservative government whose changes to pensions mean basic state pensioners are £1,250 better off.”
Theresa May, 26 April 2017
£1,250 more a year for pensioners
£1,250 more a year for pensioners. That’s a record we can be proud of.
Theresa May, 19 April 2017
Is the deficit down by two thirds?
“I will be taking out to the country in this campaign a proud record of a Conservative government: … an economy with the deficit nearly two thirds down.”
Theresa May, 19 April 2017
4 million people taken out of income tax
“A tax cut for 30 million people, with four million people taken out of income tax altogether.”
Theresa May, 19 April 2017
1.8m more pupils in good or outstanding schools
“1.8 million more children in good or outstanding schools.”
Theresa May, 29 March 2017
Experts agree school funding is falling per-pupil
“We have protected schools budgets and we're putting record funding into schools.”
Theresa May, 29 March 2017
Police funding: up or down?
“What we’ve done in the [Comprehensive Spending Review] is actually protected that police budget [...] we have protected those police budgets, including of course the precept that they are able to raise locally.”
Theresa May, 29 March 2017
Removing extremist online material
“250,000 pieces of [extremist] material have been taken down since February 2010 from the Internet.”
Theresa May, 29 March 2017
Teachers with first class degrees
“We now see more teachers in our schools, we see more teachers with first class degrees in our schools.”
Theresa May, 22 March 2017
Schools funding: a manifesto breach?
“We are seeing record levels of funding going into our schools. We have protected the schools budget.”
Theresa May, 22 March 2017
Could Scotland stay in the EU?
“Scotland will be leaving the European Union. It will leave the European Union either as a member of the UK, or were it independent, it’s very clear from the Barroso document it would not be a member of the European Union.”
Theresa May, 15 March 2017
Will there be half a trillion pounds of borrowing under Labour?
“If he looks ahead to what his policies would produce for this country: half a trillion pounds of borrowing, £500 billion pounds more borrowing under the Labour party”
Theresa May, 15 March 2017
Are there enough school places being created?
“The majority of free schools that have been opened, have been opened in areas where there’s a need for school places. And the majority have been opened, actually, in areas of disadvantage—where they are helping the very children we want to see getting the opportunity to get on in life.”
Theresa May, 8 March 2017
Are people with mental health conditions now receiving higher disability benefit payments?
“If you look at the figures two thirds of people with mental health conditions who are in receipt of, who are claiming Personal Independence Payments and are in receipt of that, two thirds of them actually get awarded the higher daily living rate allowance. That two thirds compares to less than a quarter under the previous DLA arrangements.”
Theresa May, 1 March 2017
What is parity of esteem?
“It is this Conservative government that has introduced parity of esteem in relation to dealing with mental health in the National Health Service.”
Theresa May, 1 March 2017
Amendments to PIP legislation
“...this is not a policy change, this is not a cut in the amount that is going to be spent on disability benefits and no one is going to see a reduction in their benefits from that previously awarded by the DWP.”
Theresa May, 1 March 2017
Who's cutting hospital bed numbers?
“Thanks to medical advances, to the use of technology, to the quality of care, what we see in hospital stays is actually that the average length of time for staying in hospital has virtually halved since the year 2000. But let us look at Labour’s record on this issue, in the last six years of the last Labour government, 25,000 hospital beds were cut”
Theresa May, 22 February 2017
A shortage of midwives?
“We have 1,800 more midwives in the NHS since 2010.”
Theresa May, 22 February 2017
Nursing training places
There are 10,000 more training places available for nurses in the NHS
Theresa May, 22 February 2017
Hospitals: safety versus quality
“I have to say to the Right Honourable Gentleman that he should consider correcting the record because 54% of hospital trusts are considered good or outstanding, quite different from the figure that he has shown”.
Theresa May, 22 February 2017
Staffing in A&E
“He refers specifically to Accident and Emergency. What is our response on Accident and Emergency? We see 600 more A&E consultants, 1,500 more A&E doctors, and 2,000 more paramedics.”
Theresa May, 8 February 2017
The half-a-trillion NHS
“Half a trillion pounds… we’ll be spending on the NHS this parliament.
Theresa May, 8 February 2017
The UK, the USA, and Syrian refugees
“This government, and this country, has a proud record of how it welcomes refugees. We've introduced the very particular scheme to ensure particularly vulnerable refugees in Syria can be brought to this country. Something like 10,000 Syrian refugees have come to this country since the conflict began. We're also the second-biggest bilateral donor helping and supporting refugees in the region”.
Theresa May, 1 February 2017
Increasing the state pension age
We did commit over £1 billion to lessen the impact on those worst affected so no-one will see their pension age change by more than 18 months. But there is a wider point here, we do have to be realistic in looking at pension ages about the fact that people are living longer...
Theresa May, 1 February 2017
Social care and hospital delays
“There are 24 councils, that account for 50% of the delayed discharges from social care.”
Theresa May, 22 January 2017
A&E waiting times: better or worse?
“The fact [is] that we are seeing more people being treated in our NHS. Two and half thousand more people are treated within four hours every day in the National Health Service.”
Theresa May, 11 January 2017
Has the number of people using mental health services increased?
“If we look at what is happening in relation to mental health treatment in the National Health Service, we see 1,400 more people every day accessing mental health services.”
Theresa May, 11 January 2017
Elections on the horizon in Northern Ireland
The legislation is that if within seven days we don’t have a nomination for a Deputy First Minister [in Northern Ireland], then the matter would go to an election
Theresa May, 11 January 2017
The government has misquoted the head of NHS England on spending plans
The figures speak for themselves, and they will see an increase in real terms of £10 billion. And at the time the NHS England chief executive said 'the settlement is a clear and highly welcome acceptance of our argument. Our case for the NHS has been heard and actively supported.
Theresa May, 11 January 2017
Are there 13 deaths by suicide every day?
“On average, 13 people kill themselves every day in England”
Theresa May, 9 January 2017
Delayed transfers of care: does geography matter?
“The difference between the worst performing council in relation to delayed discharges and the best is a 20 fold difference. That’s not about the difference of funding, it’s about the difference of delivery.”
Theresa May, 14 December 2016
House building: counting the government's record
“Housebuilding starts fell by 45% under Labour, in 12 years, they have increased by over two thirds since the Conservatives were in government."
Theresa May, 30 November 2016
Poverty: up or down?
We are seeing fewer families in absolute poverty and fewer families in relative poverty
Theresa May, 30 November 2016
The economic outlook: IMF or IFS?
“The IMF says that this will be the fastest-growing advanced economy in the world this year”
Theresa May, 30 November 2016
£10 billion or £4.5 billion: what's going on with NHS spending?
“It is this Government that is providing not just the £8 billion of extra funding that the NHS requested, but £10 billion of extra funding”.
Theresa May, 23 November 2016
Disability benefits: spending on the rise?
“The overall funding for disability benefits will be higher in every year up to 2020 than it was in 2010”
Theresa May, 23 November 2016
Unemployment is at a 10-year low
in the past year, employment in her constituency of Aldridge-Brownhills has gone up by 88,000
Theresa May, 16 November 2016
What's happening to social mobility?
“I note that the Social Mobility Commission has reported today that more working class youngsters are benefiting from higher education than at any point in our history. The government’s invested record levels in childcare and early years, and the attainment gap as the report acknowledges has actually narrowed.”
Theresa May, 16 November 2016
How many disabled people are in work?
“I’m pleased to say that what we’ve seen under this government is nearly half a million more disabled people actually in the workplace.”
Theresa May, 2 November 2016
The UK is now the second or third largest donor of aid to Syria
“It is this country that is the second biggest bilateral donor in relation to humanitarian aid in the Syrian region.”
Theresa May, 26 October 2016
Will leaving the EU customs union mean border checks?
“The fact that he seems to confuse a customs union with a border, where they are actually two different issues, shows why it is important that it is this party that is in Government and not his.”
Theresa May, 26 October 2016
Spending on mental health services
The fact that I set out that we are spending record levels in the NHS on mental health is absolutely right.
Theresa May, 26 October 2016
Fewer police cells are being used to hold people with mental health problems
“The number of people who are having to be taken to a police cell as a place of safety... overall I think it’s more than halved, in some areas it’s come down even more than that”
Theresa May, 19 October 2016
Total spending on mental health
“We are actually investing more in mental health services, an estimated record £11.7 billion”
Theresa May, 19 October 2016
Cancer survival rates at record levels
“We are now having cancer survival rates at a record high.”
Theresa May, 12 October 2016
Secondary schools in the South perform better than other parts of England
“If you live in the Midlands or the North, you have less chance of attending a good school than children in the South.”
Theresa May, 5 October 2016
Foreign Direct Investment in the North
"Thanks to George Osborne’s Northern Powerhouse, over the past year, foreign direct investment in the North has increased at double the rate of the rest of the country"
Theresa May, 5 October 2016
Is the government’s £10bn NHS funding commitment more than NHS leaders asked for?
“the Conservative party...investing an extra £10 billion in the NHS – more than its leaders asked for”
Theresa May, 5 October 2016
Black Caribbean pupils three times more likely to be excluded
“If you are from a black Caribbean background, you are three times more likely to be permanently excluded from school than other children.”
Theresa May, 5 October 2016
Rural properties are much less likely to have good broadband connections
“It’s just not right, for example, that half of people living in rural areas, and so many small businesses, can’t get a decent broadband connection.”
Theresa May, 5 October 2016
The number of teachers in English schools
“We have more teachers in our schools today than in 2010, we have more teachers joining the profession than leaving it”
Theresa May, 14 September 2016
Poor children at grammar schools seem to do well
“When we look at the impact of grammar schools, if you look at attainment, for disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged children, the attainment gap in grammar schools is virtually zero, which it isn’t in other schools”
Theresa May, 14 September 2016
How do selective school ratings compare?
“In fact, 99% of existing selective schools are rated good or outstanding – and 80% are outstanding, compared with just 20% of state schools overall.”
Theresa May, 9 September 2016
Black people and criminal justice
“If you’re black, you’re treated more harshly by the criminal justice system than if you’re white.”
Theresa May, 13 July 2016
Life expectancy and poverty
"If you're born poor, you will die on average nine years earlier than others."
Theresa May, 13 July 2016
Are white, working class boys the least likely to go to university?
If you’re a white, working-class boy, you’re less likely than anybody else in Britain to go to university.
Theresa May, 13 July 2016
It's harder for young people to own their own home
If you’re young, you’ll find it harder than ever before to own your own home.
Theresa May, 13 July 2016
Are state school pupils less likely to reach top jobs?
“If you’re at a state school, you’re less likely to reach the top professions than if you’re educated privately.”
Theresa May, 13 July 2016
Do women earn less than men in the UK?
“If you’re a woman, you will earn less than a man.”
Theresa May, 13 July 2016
Can working immigrants claim over £10,000 in benefits?
"At the moment, for example, workers coming to the UK on very low salaries can claim over £10,000 on top of their salary in benefits—which makes the UK a hugely attractive destination. That is why the PM is right to target the amount we pay in benefits for those coming to the UK to work, and put these arrangements on a sensible basis."
Theresa May, 6 October 2015
Apprenticeship funding: going up or down?
“I simply don’t recognise the situation he’s set out in relation to apprenticeships. We have seen 2 million apprenticeships created over the six years, we are committed to seeing more apprenticeships created.”
Theresa May, 14 September 2015
We’ve asked Theresa May to correct the record once
It’s important that those making claims in public life correct their mistakes. We follow up on our fact checks to ask politicians and media organisations to issue corrections when they get things wrong.
We have been in touch with Theresa May about one of her claims. She has yet to correct the record.
Theresa May repeated a misleading claim about the asylum backlog on 13 March 2023
It has been 391 days without Theresa May correcting the record
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