Oral Answers to Questions

Nusrat Ghani Excerpts

Thursday 15th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Mary Kelly Foy (City of Durham) (Lab)]

7. What steps she is taking to help increase access to sports facilities.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

Order. The hon. Lady is testing the Chair by sitting in a part of the Chamber where she does not normally sit.

[Mary Kelly Foy]

I thought I would sit where the Chamber looks really packed. [Laughter.]

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[Stephanie Peacock]

The hon. Lady is a strong advocate for her constituency, and she makes a very important argument. As I have outlined, the Government are investing £400 million in grassroots facilities. We are also working with the sports sector and local leaders to understand the demands of each community, and I would be happy to discuss that further with her.

[Madam Deputy Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

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

This Labour Government have announced that they intend to remove Sport England—alongside the Gardens Trust and the Theatres Trust—as a statutory consultee in planning decisions, putting playing fields across the country at risk. The Conservatives oppose this move. Can the Minister explain how first scrapping the £57 million opening school facilities fund and now allowing developers to concrete over playing fields will increase access to sports facilities?

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[Lisa Nandy]

The hon. Gentleman is right to say that there is not just a supply issue. There is a demand issue, but there is a supply issue as well. The Chancellor is very focused on ensuring that we create good jobs in every part of the country. He will know that as well as the national youth strategy which we have just published, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton South East (Pat McFadden) recently announced a new programme to ensure we specifically target 18 to 21-year-olds to help them get back into work and do not write them off at a very young age. Unfortunately, the hon. Gentleman’s party voted against the investment that was needed to make that happen. I hope he will reflect on that and get his side to change course.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

[Anna Sabine (Frome and East Somerset) (LD)]

Data suggests around 50,000 children are not getting the music education they deserve and the cuts to music PGCE—postgraduate certificate in education—bursaries will exacerbate the problem. While £25 million of new musical instruments announced by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport will be left to collect dust in storage cupboards, what discussions is the Secretary of State having with the Department for Education to ensure we have the teachers to teach the musicians of the future?

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[Lisa Nandy]

I congratulate my hon. Friend on her role in securing planning permission for those new facilities. Those places stand in the centre of our communities as a shining symbol of how much we value our young people and the communities in which they serve. I would be delighted to work with her to make sure that we continue to roll out those facilities in her constituency and across the country.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

I call the shadow Secretary of State.

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

The Secretary of State will be aware of concerns across the culture, media and sport sectors about the 14-day cooling-off period in the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. It could be exploited to allow people to sign up for an annual membership of a heritage, arts or cultural institution, visit the sites for free for two weeks, then cancel their membership and get a refund, causing considerable financial distress—on top of the recent national insurance increases, of course. There is cross-party support to close that loophole, so can the Secretary of State confirm the timeline for further action?

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[Perran Moon (Camborne and Redruth) (Lab)]

T2. Meur ras ha myttin da, Madam Deputy Speaker. In the consultation on the renewal of the BBC’s royal charter, the Government will consider how the BBC provides a range of content and services that represents all audiences and brings communities together. Does the Secretary of State agree that Cornish language and media content should be specifically included in the new charter? Will she meet me to discuss how the renewed charter can support the case for a Kernow public service media platform?

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

Shorter questions and answers please. I call the Secretary of State.

[Lisa Nandy]

I thank my hon. Friend for the question. The Government are very committed to protecting and supporting our minority languages, which are a vital part of the cultural fabric of our country. When we launched the charter review, it was intended to give space to consider how the BBC can best support minority language broadcasting, including Cornish, and I would be delighted to arrange a meeting for him.

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[Madam Deputy Speaker]

Order. When entering the Chamber, hon. Members must be aware that there is a debate taking place.

[Sir Christopher Chope]

Does the hon. Lady accept that there are practical consequences flowing from the intolerable delay in the Government making an announcement about the scheme? For example, repairs are under way at All Saints church in Mudeford and at Christchurch priory, and the consequence of the Government not doing anything about this scheme will be hundreds of thousands of pounds of extra costs for those churches.