House of Commons

Mr. David Crausby (Bolton, North-East) (Lab): May I tell my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State that the Sure Start children's centres he has visited in my constituency are extremely successful? Can he absolutely assure me that they will be allowed to thrive under the next Labour Government?

The Minister for Children, Young People and Families (Dawn Primarolo): I assure my hon. Friend that the centres will be able to thrive under the next Labour Government. There is a commitment in obligations to local authorities to make that a comprehensive offer to young children. Unlike the Conservatives, we are not proposing to make any cuts at all to the Sure Start budget.

House of Commons

Monday 18 January 2010

The House met at half-past Two o'clock

Prayers

[Mr. Speaker in the Chair]

Oral Answers to Questions

Culture, Media and Sport

The Secretary of State was asked-

17. Mr. David Crausby (Bolton, North-East) (Lab): What steps his Department is taking to secure the future of local news services. [310903]

The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Mr. Ben Bradshaw): We intend to secure the future of local and regional news through new regional news consortia, starting with pilots in Wales, Scotland and the Tyne Tees and Borders region. Last week, the Government announced the successful bidders that will go through to the next stage of the process. We do not agree with those who appear to believe that the market alone can secure the future of high quality regional news, which is greatly valued by both the public and Members of this House.

Mr. Crausby: Local newspapers, such as The Bolton News, face increasing competition from other media sources. What can my right hon. Friend do to ensure that Government advertising is steered towards these vital local sources?

18 Jan 2010 : Column 14

Mr. Bradshaw: The first thing that I would say to my hon. Friend is that local newspapers and local newspaper groups have warmly welcomed the Government's proposals for the new regional news consortia. Many local newspaper groups are involved in bidding for some of the pilots to which I have just referred. I have some sympathy with his point about the impact of local government free sheets and their advertising on local newspapers. He might have noticed that we announced in December, just before Christmas, that we would continue to require local authorities to advertise in paid-for newspapers. The Department for Communities and Local Government is undertaking a review of the publicity code for local authorities, in which we have made our opinions quite clear.