Oral Answers to Questions

Lord Brennan of Canton Excerpts

Thursday 14th July 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Prisk]

My hon. Friend knows very well that an excellent south-east midlands proposal is already under way. I am encouraging people to work together, but we will certainly always look at representations on a fair and open basis.

[Kevin Brennan (Cardiff West) (Lab)]

Will the Secretary of State actively seek to get responsibility for competition policy in media ownership back into his Department? The fact that he was honey-trapped in his surgery does not mean that it should not be a Minister in his Department who takes such decisions. We have now seen the error of sending these matters to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

[Vince Cable]

Unlike my predecessors, I do not see my job in terms of empire building; I am more concerned that we should get good policy. The Deputy Prime Minister has spoken today on the need radically to reform policy in relation to competition and cross-ownership in the media. Indeed, we might well have to revisit the legislation, because it is clearly unsatisfactory.