Oral Answers to Questions

Lindsay Hoyle Excerpts

Thursday 26th February 2026 Commons Chamber

[Lincoln Jopp]

I thank the Secretary of State for that answer. In Spelthorne, we love our sport. I was playing walking cricket last week with the cricket club. I have been in the ring at the boxing academy and I have been to the dance academy. We also have Spelthorne FC, Staines & Lammas FC and Ashford Town (Middlesex) FC. I am inviting my hon. Friend the Member for Windsor (Jack Rankin) to come and watch Windsor and Eton play against my Ashford Town (Middlesex) team, and we look forward to a fantastic game. However, the jewel in our crown is the year 11 girls football team at Thamesmead school, which is in the last 32 of the country. Will the Minister wish them the huge amount of success that we all hope they will achieve when they play the Beacon academy from Kent—

[Mr Speaker]

Come on, finish! I call the Secretary of State.

[Lisa Nandy]

We have just announced the first allocations of the £400 million that we are investing in grassroots sport, but I would pay a lot of money to see the hon. Gentleman at a dance academy. May I take the opportunity to wish Thamesmead—both teams actually—the best of success in what should be a fantastic competition.

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[Lisa Nandy]

I thank the hon. Member for that question, and many hon. Members will thank him for it, as they have raised it with me and the Sport Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Barnsley South (Stephanie Peacock), consistently over recent years. The Sport Minister is working very closely with her counterpart at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to address this issue. We have made more funding available, but we now need to ensure that it gets to the right places, so that every child can access good swimming provision in their local area.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

[Mr Louie French (Old Bexley and Sidcup) (Con)]

I refer hon. Members to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. On behalf of those on this side of the House, I congratulate everyone at Team GB for an incredible winter Olympics performance. Like many across the House, I was glued to the excellent coverage during recess, and was pleased to see online that the Sport Minister was in Milan supporting the team. We all know that the true value of Team GB’s success is their ability to inspire the next generation of athletes, so what steps is the Secretary of State taking to secure the legacy of these games in both the elite and grassroots facilities required for sports to succeed?

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[Stephanie Peacock]

Boxing clubs like Fight for Peace play a huge role in supporting young people’s physical and mental health. Through Sport England, funding for England Boxing between 2022 and 2029 will be over £9 million. I recently met with the all-party parliamentary group on boxing, and I would be delighted to meet my hon. Friend to discuss this further and, indeed, to visit his constituency.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee.

[Dame Caroline Dinenage (Gosport) (Con)]

We all know that actions speak louder than words. So far we have seen a reduction in the urban cricket domes that were committed to by the last Government, the scrapping of our National Citizen Service without anything to replace it and now, supposedly, an argument over who will be funding school sport. Social mobility depends on participation. Research by Sky found that girls who play after-school sport in the UK are 50% more likely to get professional roles as adults. What are the Government doing to address this, and can the Minister give us grassroots examples in our urban communities of where things are improving rather than getting worse?

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[The Minister for Creative Industries, Media and Arts (Ian Murray)]

This Government are championing the UK’s living heritage: the crafts, customs and festivals that are important for local pride and community cohesion. Following the ratification of the 2003 UNESCO convention, we invite communities to submit their traditions to inventories of living heritage in the UK. Some examples are Up Helly Aa on Shetland, the Notting Hill carnival and, some might argue, the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon).

[Mr Speaker]

Don’t encourage him!

[Rachel Hopkins]

The end of May will mark the 50th Luton international carnival, which is the UK’s largest one-day carnival. I think that 50 years means it qualifies as a UK tradition—it is definitely a Luton tradition. Does the Minister agree that events such as Luton carnival are vital for celebrating the rich cultural diversity of our country and strengthening community cohesion, and may I invite him to Luton to join in with carnival this year?

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[Lisa Nandy]

I absolutely share the hon. Member’s assessment about the vital role of youth provision and the devastating impact that the 73% cuts to youth provision under the last Government made to the life chances of young people. The Sport Minister will be more than happy to meet him to discuss that issue.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

[Ian Sollom (St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire) (LD)]

According to the Office for National Statistics, 3.8 million people report feeling lonely, with young people consistently among the loneliest groups. Is it any wonder when we have seen youth centres shuttered and libraries boarded up, and the very places that bring people together hollowed out? The Liberal Democrats have a plan to change this by creating a new wave of third spaces centred around something simple but incredibly powerful: shared hobbies. We want to bring people with shared interests together, creating places where they can thrive. What is the Minister doing to tackle loneliness through rebuilding community life and shared experiences? Will she seriously consider our proposals for a bold new wave of hobby hubs to help restore the social fabric of our communities?

[Mr Speaker]

Before the Minister responds, I point out that the question is linked to Perry Barr in Birmingham. The hon. Member is well away from Birmingham, and I am not quite sure that his question links to youth services—good luck.

[Lisa Nandy]

I am sure, Mr Speaker, that the people of Birmingham Perry Barr are clamouring for a hobby hub. In that spirit, I will address the important point that the hon. Member makes. Our national youth strategy is the first time we have put young people in the driving seat of their own lives. We handed over money and power to a generation of young people who told us that they need three things: somewhere to go, something to do and someone who cares. That is why we are investing in the next generation of youth centres and youth workers. To the point made by the Chair of the Select Committee, the hon. Member for Gosport (Dame Caroline Dinenage), I was delighted to be in Grimsby a couple of weeks ago where we opened an OnSide youth zone, which had people queuing for miles down the road to come in and see the incredible provision that we have been able to fund and back. I will certainly consider his proposal, and I would be keen to work with him as we help to rebuild youth work and youth centres, connect people to one another and turn around over a decade of decline.

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[Sir Ashley Fox (Bridgwater) (Con)]

Bridgwater is the home of carnival. At nearly 180 years old, ours is the oldest carnival in the UK. This fantastic cultural event promotes an active lifestyle among the whole community. However, every year the cost of complying with legislation makes it that little bit harder to continue. Will the Minister meet with me and members of the carnival to discuss what support might be available so that this fantastic spectacle continues for another 180 years?

[Mr Speaker]

That is a shoehorned question—good luck!

[Stephanie Peacock]

I am aware of the issue and would be delighted to meet the hon. Member to discuss it further.

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[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Stephanie Peacock)]

Spending on youth services in England saw a 73% reduction under the last Government. Too many areas like my hon. Friend’s then had no youth services. That is why our national youth strategy, backed by over £500 million, is reversing that trend, and I would be happy to discuss it further with him.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Secretary of State.

[Nigel Huddleston (Droitwich and Evesham) (Con)]

As mentioned by the Secretary of State, this week’s BAFTA awards—a great celebration of British creativity—were marred by the unnecessary airing of involuntary comments by Tourette’s campaigner John Davidson. It appears a microphone was placed close to John, and some offensive comments were aired, despite a two-hour delay. This no doubt well-intended attempt at inclusivity has caused great anxiety to John and great offence to many others. Does the Secretary of State agree that the BBC and BAFTA must not only investigate this matter but apologise?

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[The Minister for Creative Industries, Media and Arts (Ian Murray)]

It is not just about building homes and economic drivers; it is about building cultural and heritage communities as well. It is fantastic to see so many infrastructure projects taking shape across Cambridgeshire and Cambridge this year. Cambridge already has a fantastic cultural offer, with Arts Council England’s national portfolio programme already supporting organisations like the New International Encounter and Oblique Arts, both of which work with communities across the region. I encourage my hon. Friend to ask all of his cultural organisations to look at the £1.5 billion Arts Everywhere fund—that record funding was announced last month—and maybe the city or town of culture programme.

[Mr Speaker]

I call Callum Anderson—not here. I call Rishi Sunak.

[Rishi Sunak (Richmond and Northallerton) (Con)]

Richmond, North Yorkshire, is home to brilliant cultural assets like Richmond castle, the Georgian Theatre Royal, the Station and the Green Howards Museum. It has a unique place in our national story, with a history stretching back to Norman times and a record of successfully putting on community events, like MayFest. This gateway to the dales is also the UK’s most copied place name: it is the original Richmond but there are more than 100 across the world, from America to India. Will the Secretary of State join me in congratulating Richmond Yorkshire Community Interest Company, which is putting a great bid together to be the UK’s town of culture?

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[Lisa Nandy]

I am absolutely delighted that the Brits will be held in Manchester this year, and I will, of course, be in attendance. The hon. Gentleman raises a serious point. Whether through our work on the voluntary levy to get funding into grassroots music venues or our work with the music industry to solve the challenges posed by the issues around AI and copyright, he is right to say that we need to work to support what is not just an incredible industry that brings joy to millions of people all over the world, but one of the UK’s best exports.

[Mr Speaker]

I call Dame Chi Onwurah to ask the final topical question.

[Dame Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West) (Lab)]

Northern industries built this nation, but the previous Government did not care about our industrial heritage, which is one reason why Newcastle’s iconic swing bridge no longer swings. On her recent visit, the Minister for Heritage encouraged us to take the steps necessary to safeguard its future, but what help can the Secretary of State provide to support the funding necessary to get the swing bridge swinging?

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[Lincoln Jopp (Spelthorne) (Con)]

St Nicholas church in Shepperton in my constituency made an application under the listed places of worship scheme to get £16,000 of VAT back on essential repairs that it has made. It got an auto-reply saying that the scheme has been used up and that there is no money left. On behalf of the Church Commissioners, will the hon. Member entreat the Government to look again at that application and see whether the VAT can be reclaimed?

[Mr Speaker]

I am not quite sure that question is relevant, actually.

[Marsha De Cordova]

That is what I was going to say.

[Mr Speaker]

Yes, do not worry about it. Let us move on.

[Douglas McAllister (West Dunbartonshire) (Lab)]

3. What assessment the Church has made of the potential implications for its policies of trends in levels of church attendance during Christmas 2025.