Speeches by Huq.

“I want to move on to how you might enshrine the right to play in legislation. Where is the UK taking this seriously? I know it was a recommendation of the Play Commission.”

“Ingrid, Jasmine Hoffman speaks very highly of you, and she will love what you guys have said about “No ball games”.”

“Yes, that is the one, exactly. It is seared on my memory forever.”

“Was there one of those pictures of Andy Burnham and Ed Balls?”

“Do you think the DfE gets it? Does the Department understand the importance of play?”

“How could you support teachers, when I think a DfE study shows that only 29% of primary school teachers feel prepared or well-prepared to facilitate play?”

“It used to be badges, but you could just have a splashing around, mucking about, doggy-paddle thing in a more play way, rather than having to do 29 lengths.”

“You have a lot of examples of best practice. What things have worked? You mentioned bikes. We had cycling proficiency in my day, and I do not think my son had that. There was a Mayor of London scheme, where he learned to ride.”

“I just wanted to follow up by asking how you would enshrine play in the curriculum. What would it look like in practice? We have the review coming up, haven’t we, this autumn? What would be your ideal blue-sky thinking?”

“It was just the other day, wasn’t it? Good, good. Lastly, thinking about that APPG this afternoon, a constituent of mine, Jasmine Hoffman—you mentioned getting rid of the “No ball games” sign—is on a one-woman crusade. In fact, I think she has a whole NGO behind her now. You also said that one in eight children has no …”

“Has funding not been extended for the HAF programme? Quite a lot of that is sporty stuff.”

“Given how local authorities have been under the cosh since 2010, do you think they are going to have difficulty meeting those requirements in the play sufficiency duty?”

“So that it is not some sort of same old, same old, in terms of the children who are consulted, with consultation fatigue and a lack of children.”

“Good, I'll see you in there. How realistic do you think it is to enforce this when it is going to be grown-ups doing it, and how would you recommend that there is engagement with actual children?”

“There is a very popular APPG. I think it is meeting tonight on this subject.”

“I want to move on to how you might enshrine the right to play in legislation. Where is the UK taking this seriously? I know it was a recommendation of the Play Commission.”

“Do we have any indication from the UK Government on how seriously it is being taken?”

“We are in London, the greatest city in the world—some would say anyway—and we have all just come back from holiday, have we not? Our Mayor Sadiq Khan has ambitious plans for an overnight accommodation levy that would put us on a par with Paris and New York and would harness our growth. Those funds could help regenerate…”

“It is truly momentous that this Government look set to put long-standing UK policy into practice and recognise Palestine this month, but it feels like time is running out for a two-state solution, as the Foreign Secretary has acknowledged. We have now witnessed man-made famine, the bombing of hospitals and hostages, an…”

“Leaving time for Harpreet Uppal to conclude, I call the Minister.”