British Council

Lord Callanan Excerpts

Tuesday 9th June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Lemos (Lab)]

I am of course happy to write to the noble Baroness, but I make it clear that I hesitate, with my noble friend Lord Livermore sitting next to me, to say anything other than that the Treasury expects the loan to be paid in cash. He has made that point before, so I dare say he may have some views on this letter too. The art collection is a matter for the British Council to decide on, not for the Government.

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

My Lords, the British Council has an important role to play in helping the UK to project its influence as a force for good on the world stage. It is, consequently, a member of the UK Government’s Soft Power Council. That council met four times last year, but it has not met once this year. Could the Minister tell the House why?

[Lord Lemos (Lab)]

As the noble Lord knows, soft power extends far beyond the Government, the British Council and, indeed, the BBC World Service to many other sectors—higher education, the creative industries and so on. The Soft Power Council had an independent review under Minister Elmore. Let me be clear that what is needed in the Soft Power Council is better co-ordination and more focus across all the different sectors, not just for the British Council and for the BBC World Service. That is what Minister Elmore will take forward.