BBC Local Radio

It is a pleasure to speak under your chairmanship, Mr Turner. I congratulate the hon. Member for Suffolk Coastal (Dr Coffey) on securing the debate and on securing such good attendance by MPs on the last day before the recess; that shows how strongly we feel that we must join our voices to those of our constituents and ensure that the BBC hears what we are saying. As the hon. Lady said, we need to stand up for licence fee payers. We need to listen to what they want and ensure that they get a good deal. Local radio is a very good deal—for licence fee payers and for the industry. As the hon. Members for Colne Valley (Jason McCartney) and for North Thanet (Mr Gale) pointed out, drawing on their experiences, it is a breeding ground and a training ground for reporters who move on through the system, so it is very important. It is the lifeblood of the whole system. Like many right hon. and hon. Members, I was brought up with local radio. My mother was a regular contributor to Radio Leicester as part of the comedy duo Florrie and Ada. They performed in Sileby dialect—[Interruption.] I cannot do the dialect myself, but my mother still can. That illustrates the way in which local radio keeps voice, dialect and idiom alive, which is also very important. Local radio is part of the lifeblood of communities. The local radio station that I know best now is Radio Humberside. I am pleased to see in the Chamber the hon. Member for Cleethorpes (Martin Vickers), who will also celebrate Radio Humberside. We both enjoy, I am sure, the coverage of local football, although recently I have not been able to enjoy it particularly.