PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE
Topical Questions - 3 September 2026 (Commons/Commons Chamber)

Let me start by recognising the extraordinary British sportsmen and women who lit up the world this summer. I also put on record what an honour it is to return to this place with a newly created Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. I pay tribute to my right hon. Friend the Member for Leicester West (Liz Kendall) for the extraordinary work she did in a very short period, opening up opportunities for young people to benefit from the technological developments of the future, and taking decisive action on social media. I also thank the hon. Member for Droitwich and Evesham (Nigel Huddleston) for the constructive way he has both challenged and supported us as a Front-Bench team since the general election, always acting in the interests of the sectors that we both care passionately about. I welcome the hon. Member for Reigate (Rebecca Paul) to her place, and I am very much looking forward to working with her.

Finally, I wish to pay tribute to the rugby league legend Sir Billy Boston, and to his incredible wife, Lady Joan, who sadly passed away a few weeks before Sir Billy. Billy was a sporting giant. His talent, determination and legacy will inspire generations for years to come. It was a privilege to work with you, Mr Speaker, following your campaign over many years to right a historic wrong and to ensure that he became the first ever knight of rugby league. Rest in peace, Sir Billy Boston.

Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick recently said that its business is now well over 90% digitally distributed. Take-Two has confirmed that the physical box of “Grand Theft Auto VI” will not contain a physical disc, but will instead contain a download code. Killing physical media prevents consumers trading in or sharing their games, and it erodes the concept of true ownership of a product. What is the Secretary of State doing to support the physical ownership of video games, as well as music and film?

The Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh South (Ian Murray) has just reminded me that he and I are so old that we started out loading cassette tapes when we played video games as kids. I am aware that people feel very strongly about this issue. My hon. Friend will know that decisions around media formats are ultimately for companies, but we as a Government believe that companies should always be clear with customers about what they are paying for. That is why we have commissioned the Chartered Trading Standards Institute to develop guidance that will clarify people’s ownership rights when they purchase digital games, music and films.

I call the shadow Secretary of State.

I thank the Secretary of State for her warm words. I am looking forward to working constructively with her and her team.

May I begin by paying tribute to PC Matthew Blades and PC Tom Clough, who were killed in a horrific head-on collision on the A66 last month? The car that collided with them was travelling in the wrong direction. My thoughts are with their families and friends at this terrible, terrible time. Their deaths have renewed concern about videos on TikTok and other platforms that glorify dangerous driving and police chases. The behaviour these videos encourage can have fatal consequences. We know the Government recently raised this issue with social media companies, yet the content remains up. What more will the Minister and the Secretary of State do to ensure that TikTok and other platforms crack down on that before more lives are lost?

The hon. Lady is absolutely right, first of all, to pay tribute to those incredible police officers who lost their lives. May I associate myself with her remarks and put on record my sadness, love and sympathy to their families and loved ones? I agree with her that there is more that must be done to tackle what is becoming an epidemic in young people in particular using social media to encourage dangerous behaviour. I have a meeting set up with TikTok in the coming days. We have obviously been in close discussion with it and other social media companies since that tragic, appalling incident, but there is more that we as a Government intend to do and I would be very happy to meet her to discuss that further.

My hon. Friend is a great champion for his city. It was a pleasure to do a sporting visit to his constituency earlier this year. We have a really strong shortlist for the city of culture—and indeed for the town of culture. I look forward to visiting those on the final shortlist in the near future.

Cricket is incredibly popular, and I know how important it is in my own constituency—I visited Worsbrough to see the England and Wales Cricket Board’s schools programme in action. Programmes like that are incredibly important for getting people, and in particular young people, involved and active in sport.

I thank my hon. Friend for bringing this incredibly serious question to DCMS questions this morning. There is no place for homophobia or prejudice in our society, and the media has a duty to uphold the highest standards, not polarise or divide. I understand that Ofcom is investigating whether the programme has breached broadcasting code standards, and I expect it to do so without fear or favour. Through our media Green Paper, we are considering how to ensure Ofcom has the right powers to protect audiences and regulate TV services in the future. We have a proud free media and free press in this country, but that does not come without responsibilities, and GB News should be thoroughly ashamed of itself.

The hon. Member will know from previous discussions we have had in this place that there is a balance to be struck between making sure we get the right level of investment in sport and making sure those sports are opened up to the widest possible audience. That is a conversation that we continue to have. There is another element to this, which is the cost of tickets, and this Government are taking action on secondary ticket touts, which I know the hon. Member’s party strongly supports. Later today, we will have the pleasure of introducing the Sporting Events Bill to this place. Through that Bill, we are taking action to make sure ticket prices remain affordable and that those practices are stamped out when it comes to sporting events.

I absolutely, 100% agree with my hon. Friend that football belongs to its fans. For far too long, fans have been treated as at best an afterthought and at worst a nuisance when it comes to the future of their own clubs, their own tournaments and their own game. As a Government, we are appalled by what happened recently regarding the world cup, and the Prime Minister has been crystal clear that it is time for a change of leadership at FIFA.

The Charity Commission takes very seriously concerns about the alleged misuse of charities in the UK to promote the interests of foreign states. The Government’s social cohesion action plan, published in March, set out our plans to strengthen the Charity Commission’s powers to tackle extremists’ abuse of charities. We are working with the Charity Commission to develop the necessary legislation, and we take this issue very, very seriously.

That completes DCMS questions. Some news for the House: when we return after the conference recess, the session will be for an hour.