Speeches by Waugh.

“I just wanted to pick up on something that you said. Did I hear correctly that the ECB is cutting the funding for your Street programme?”

“I find that quite shocking in many ways. Obviously, this Committee is going to hold the Government to account, but it is also our job to hold various bits of sport to account. It is quite shocking, given that in a constituency like mine, in Rochdale, we have a strong Pakistani/Bangladeshi heritage. All the kids are obs…”

“The UK tax gap grew by a shocking £5 billion in 2023, in the dying days of the Conservatives, and former Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi was sacked for failing to declare an investigation by His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs into his tax affairs. I welcome the Treasury’s crackdown on tax avoidance. Does my hon. Friend agree t…”

“I welcome today’s action plan. I particularly welcome the creation of a new child protection authority and the doubling of funding for groups who are helping survivors and victims of child abuse, up and down the country. The independent inquiry into grooming gangs in Rochdale, commissioned by Greater Manchester’s Mayor…”

“1. What steps she is taking to help tackle tax evasion.”

“This whole House was and remains united in its condemnation of the horrific attacks by Hamas on Israel on 7 October and their disgusting treatment of the hostages ever since, but many in this House have also been appalled by the indiscriminate killing of tens of thousands of men, women and children from the state of Pa…”

“1. What steps her Department is taking to help promote rugby league.”

“Rochdale Hornets have had a winning start to their league season—a spicy performance no doubt linked to our new partnership with Nando’s restaurants. Mr Speaker, if you get a Rochdale Hornets season ticket, you can get 20% off in Rochdale Nando’s. Ours is a true community club with the work off the pitch as important a…”

“The Hostages and Missing Families Forum in Israel said this morning that it was horrified to wake up to the news of the expanded military operation, and that is because it knows the risk that this poses to its loved ones. But it is the loved ones of Palestinians who have already suffered so much that are most relevant …”

“Do you know what your class figures are?”

““Channel 4 News”, for example, does broadcast from Leeds once a week, or more than that, but there is a suggestion that that is purely cosmetic and that you have presenters literally going up on the train and coming back down again; it is not a genuine commitment to Leeds, it is not people relocating, it is not, as the…”

“Can I ask you more broadly about your Fast Forward strategy that was launched last January? The Fast Forward strategy admitted that it would involve redundancies. You have said also that you aim to grow 600 roles in the nations and regions. How effective have you been at moving jobs outside London?”

“One of the victims of Brand told The Sunday Times last year, “I came forward hoping that it would help bring about change and that bad behaviour would never again be tolerated in the TV industry. Instead, the whole process has been disempowering and exhausting. What Channel 4 management seem to care most about is cover…”

“That is the point. So that person did refer it up the chain. Does that not say a lot about Channel 4’s procedures?”

“You say it was not referred up the chain, but we understand that, actually, she did refer it to a line manager, and the line manager then referred it to someone else further up the chain who did have access to the board. Have you got into any of that particular detail?”

“Given that the BBC sacked him in 2012, why was he still on Channel 4 until 2019?”

“Sir Ian and Dr Mahon, I would like to ask you about some workforce issues in Channel 4. Channel 4’s “Dispatches” and The Sunday Times and The Times reported on serious allegations against Russell Brand, particularly allegations of rape, sexual assault and emotional abuse. When Brand was sacked by the BBC in 2012, the i…”

“I am a member of the National Union of Journalists.”

“Finally, on staff diversity, why have you chosen floor levels rather than targets on that? Do you want to explain how that will work in practice? Also, do you have diversity arrangements not just for sex and race but for class as well—for class-based staff to access?”

“The BBC presents its lunchtime news from Salford.”