Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Lisa Nandy and Jonathan Brash(3 weeks ago)
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Lisa Nandy
I thank the shadow Secretary of State for his support for the tourism industry. I recognise that it has had significant pressures in recent years, particularly with the pandemic, but I am proud of our tourism industry; it is second to none and delivering in every part of the country. We have put the tourism industry at the centre of our attention with the visitor economy growth strategy. We see it as an area of great potential, and the tourism Minister is working closely with the industry to unlock the benefits for the whole country.
Mr Jonathan Brash (Hartlepool) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Lisa Nandy)
Since we last met, we have been delighted to celebrate the sporting success of our incredible Paralympic athletes, and we have welcomed the Brits to Manchester for the first time. We have made a multimillion-pound investment in the iconic Crucible theatre in Sheffield, securing its future as a world-class venue for generations to come. Just this week, I announced almost £130 million to protect world-class theatres, museums and libraries in every part of our country. Taken together, this Government are delivering on our promise that arts, culture, sports, dance, drama and music are not a luxury for the privileged or something to be consigned to a few postcodes—they must be for everyone, everywhere.
Mr Brash
I refer Members to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. Swim England recently launched its report into the state of the nation’s swimming facilities. The report, “The Deep End”, clearly shows the crisis facing community swimming, largely due to issues with funding and infrastructure. While Hartlepool’s brilliant Labour council is delivering amazing new facilities in the form of the Highlight leisure centre opening in June, not every constituency is so lucky. What steps is the Secretary of State’s Department taking to improve access to swimming facilities where those facilities have been lost or are in danger of disappearing?
Lisa Nandy
I share my hon. Friend’s passion on this issue. We are intensely aware that, as well as the sweeping cuts to local authorities that were made under the last Government, the rise in energy costs has significantly affected swimming facilities in every part of the country. We have committed £400 million to transform sports facilities over the next four years, and swimming ought to be a beneficiary of that—I will certainly make sure that it is. I have also discussed these issues with the Energy Secretary to make sure that we are pulling every lever at our disposal to ensure that swimming facilities are protected from some of the impacts, in particular of war in the middle east.
BBC Leadership
Debate between Lisa Nandy and Jonathan Brash(5 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Lisa Nandy
Everyone in this House is right to take with the utmost seriousness the failings that the BBC has accepted have happened over the course of this year, but I would gently push back against the idea that the public has lost confidence in the BBC. It remains the most trusted source of news in this country and, as I said earlier, in many other parts of the world as well.
In terms of the actions that I can take as Secretary of State, I am working closely to support the chairman of the board through what are obviously tumultuous times. The director general has agreed to stay on in order to see the organisation through the transition. We have already had discussions about the process for recruiting for a new director general and the need to strengthen the work of the board and senior leadership when it comes to editorial oversight. That includes, as I said a moment ago, a discussion about the mix of skills and experience that is needed at the highest levels of the organisation.
Mr Jonathan Brash (Hartlepool) (Lab)
I welcome the Secretary of State’s statement. It is absolutely right to hold the BBC to the highest standard, because that is the best way to defend our national broadcaster. Does she agree that it is not acceptable for Members of this House who are paid by the BBC’s commercial rivals—in fact, looking at the time, one of them is probably in make-up as we speak—to use their status as an MP to mount sustained and frenzied attacks that have only one aim: to destroy this national institution?
Lisa Nandy
As I said earlier, it is the legitimate, right and proper role of Members of this House to raise serious concerns about the decisions that have been made at the BBC over recent months and the response to them, but there is a difference between that and making a sustained attack on an institution that has stood at the centre of public life for over a century and belongs to us all.