Oral Answers to Questions

Josh Babarinde Excerpts

Thursday 12th November 2026 Commons Chamber

[Stephanie Peacock]

The right hon. Member is a strong advocate for her constituency. This Government are investing in heritage across the country, with £230 million committed by 2030. I am sure the Minister for Heritage would be delighted to discuss it with her further.

[Josh Babarinde (Eastbourne) (LD)]

8. What steps she is taking to support local journalism.

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

Before I answer the question, I say to the hon. Gentleman that we stand fully with him after recent incidents online, with him having received tens of thousands of disgusting messages and death threats. This Government and everyone else in this House—maybe with the exception of a few Members of Parliament —take a zero-tolerance approach to racism and those kinds of threats. We stand with the hon. Gentleman.

Local journalism is vital to society and democracy, including titles such as the Eastbourne Herald and the Eastbourne Reporter in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency. We published the local media action plan to help the sector adjust and thrive in the digital age. Our actions include a local news fund with up to £12 million, a campaign to inspire the next generation of journalists and readers, and an updated plan for journalists’ safety, both here and abroad.

[Josh Babarinde]

I thank the Minister for his comments. It should not be controversial to say that you do not have to be white to be English. [Hon. Members: “Hear, hear.”] Much of social media has become a cesspit of abuse and disinformation, but local journalism can be an antidote to such poison. Local journalism in Eastbourne is thriving, with the likes of Adam and Ivana recently joining the Eastbourne Herald and Paul Gibson’s Eastbourne News expanding, too. Will the Minister tell us a little more about what he can do to support local journalism in the fight against disinformation and misinformation?

[Ian Murray]

We have the local news fund and the local news strategy. This is an issue right across the country, and we need to ensure that we have a thriving local journalistic community so that we can get those stories to people and so that the news is trusted and trustworthy. The BBC obviously plays a key role in that, and the BBC charter process is investigating how it can support that infrastructure and ecosystem across the country. I would be very happy to work with the hon. Gentleman in sharing his experience to see what we can do to help his local area and areas across all regions across the country. I want to emphasise from the Dispatch Box, too, that you do not have to be white to be English—the hon. Gentleman is right to say that—although you do have to be tight to be Scottish. [Laughter.]