Speeches by Irons.

“Q8. With £158 million in fair funding, £20 million of Pride in Place funding for New Addington and funding for new trams, this Labour Government are finally giving Croydon the backing that it needs. Building a Croydon for all starts with ensuring that our residents have the dignity and stability of a decent home, but h…”

“Is there an argument for the Government to put in place or propose national standards for good practice and a framework for SAGs?”

“We will move on to safety advisory groups. We heard evidence from Nick Bitel about the patchwork of inconsistency and the confusion that was causing within the sector. He gave a quite interesting example. He said, “We see very, very different security advice on events where we think that they are at the same level, but…”

“Finally, one of our witnesses said that they did not want the Maccabi Tel Aviv affair last year to lead to throwing the baby out with the bathwater when it came to SAGs. As the Minister responsible for major events, have you had any conversations about changes to the system in general off the back of that?”

“An Arts Professional report by journalist Neil Puffett suggested that ministerial involvement influenced the timing of the national portfolio extension. Do you accept the concerns that this decision raised about the Arts Council’s independence?”

“Thanks for coming. Beyond reaffirming the arm’s length principle, what concrete safeguards now exist to prevent political direction from influencing decisions?”

“Just to tease that out a little bit, what does that mean, practically? I appreciate the aspiration, and of course you are absolutely right. Artists are our moral compass sometimes, and push us in ways that we would not necessarily think, in places like this. In what concrete things in your processes or how you work do …”

“How would those safeguards, then, have altered the handling of the ENO case?”

“On YouTube.”

“I thank the Minister for her tireless work and campaigning on this issue, both in this place and in our community of Croydon. I know that this moral mission is personal to her, but given her experience, does she agree that tackling knife crime requires a whole-system approach bringing together policing, schools, health…”

“So it is not economically viable to be using YouTube. It is more of a marketing tool.”

“Your content isn’t, but the platform that you put it on has been found to be so. Your walled garden of Sky Kids on Sky—your Sky platforms—I am sure has been created to the highest possible standards, but whether you are using it as a marketing tool or not, the content is on a platform that has been found to be intentio…”

“On a broader point around video sharing platforms, you have both spoken passionately about the importance of high-quality content and what goes into making the programmes that you make. We have heard Milkshake! described as a safe space for parents and children on the linear schedule. Do you think that video sharing pl…”

“Obviously, they have just been involved in a quite high-profile legal case in which they were found to have created a platform that is intentionally addictive to young people. Are you comfortable with your content being on a platform that is intentionally addictive?”

“Are your platforms safe for children aged 13 and above?”

“Are your platforms safe for children aged 13 and above?”

“Ian, in your written evidence, Sky asked that any new prominence regime covers public service content more broadly, rather than only content from PSBs. Sky is behind a paywall, so why would we pass legislation to protect your income, basically?”

“On a broader point around video sharing platforms, you have both spoken passionately about the importance of high-quality content and what goes into making the programmes that you make. We have heard Milkshake! described as a safe space for parents and children on the linear schedule. Do you think that video sharing pl…”

“I will declare some interests: I worked at Channel 4 before becoming an MP, and I have two small children who have watched a lot of Milkshake!—thank you so much for your service. It is a really lovely thing. I am going to ask some questions about YouTube and video sharing platforms, and about prominence and what that m…”

“The point I am making is that although where you can control things, you are producing these things to the highest possible safety standards, you are being encouraged to put more content on to a place that you do not control and has been found to have been designed to be intentionally addictive. Do you think that the G…”