Latest news with #DameAndreaJenkyns
Telegraph
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Dear Tim Davie, here are 10 easy ways to get Reform voters to watch the BBC
Yikes! Panic stations at Broadcasting House as it occurs to the BBC high-ups that those ghastly, knuckle-dragging Farage fans might be more popular than in their worst nightmares. So sealed off from mainstream opinion is the BBC Bubble that, until now, the rise of Reform UK has been dismissed as some kind of unfortunate smell which can safely be dispersed if presenters just keep treating Reform spokespeople as if they are enemy spies brought in for interrogation, not democratically elected men and women who speak for millions. The corporation's lofty condescension to those uppity plebs was summed up by a BBC Politics tweet which described the newly-elected Reform UK Mayor of Greater Lincolnshire, Dame Andrea Jenkyns, as 'the former Greggs worker and Miss UK finalist'. Never mind that she'd also been a Conservative MP and minister. Mind you, give me a Greggs worker and beauty queen over the coldly supercilious Naga Munchetty any day. BBC staff are quick to complain about 'misogyny' unless the target is someone they consider to be 'far-Right' and almost certainly Brexity (Eeuw!) in which case all feminist sensitivities are off. That snobbish, snide remark about the force that is Dame Andrea provoked a huge backlash, quite rightly, and the BBC hastily removed the tweet saying, 'We acknowledge the tone of the post was wrong, and it has been taken down'. Still, they had revealed their true colours – Rayner Red and Lib Dem Yellow – and they weren't pretty. Now – oh, joy! – we are told the BBC is holding talks about how to win over Reform-voting viewers amid fears their views are 'under-represented by the broadcaster'. You don't say! I reckon many Reform supporters have already cancelled their licence fees in disgust. Still, to appeal to any that remain, senior executives including director-general Tim Davie and chair Samir Shah are said to have discussed plans to overhaul the BBC's news and drama output to tackle 'low-trust issues' among Reform voters. Deborah Turness, BBC News boss, apparently briefed the broadcaster's board on how to ensure the views of Reformers were being given enough airtime. The BBC is understood to be keen to ensure it represents all audiences and their concerns, suggesting the broadcaster may seek to boost its coverage of issues such as immigration. Well, that's a first. I can count on the fingers of one hand the occasions when the BBC has suggested that immigration is anything other than an unmitigated joy or treated anyone arguing to cut numbers as anything other than some racist pariah. I still remember the pained wince of Laura Kuenssberg when Kemi Badenoch confirmed that she did indeed believe that not all cultures are equally valid – 'cultures that believe in child marriage?' quipped the Tory leader devastatingly. A number of key BBC presenters may need to be sedated before being required to challenge their own faith in open borders and slavish loyalty to the EU. Why, you might ask, has it taken the prospect (um, threat) of a Reform government to make our supposedly national broadcaster feel it has to make sure that all viewers' experiences and backgrounds are portrayed on screen? Well, while Reform has not said it would scrap the BBC licence fee, it believes it is 'not sustainable' in its current form. Playing nice with a future prime minister Farage may stick in the craw, but the Beeb don't have much choice but to swallow hard. If the BBC is serious, here are my top 10 tips for Reform-friendly programming: 1. Bring back Jeremy Clarkson In anything. Literally anything and everything. Call The Midwife, Springwatch, sewing contests, anchoring News at Ten, chairing Question Time. Clarkson's Farm on Amazon Prime is rightly adored for its host's no-nonsense style and contempt for fashionable pieties. Peak Reform! Best of all for attracting Nigel fans, restore Top Gear with the original, irrepressible cast of petrolheads. Clarkson once said the most British saying of all was, 'Oh, for God's sake.' He speaks directly to Reform voters. 2. Broadcast all England Test matches No need to sack Gary Lineker (a Reform imperative if Mr Gaza hadn't already stepped down!), but the BBC could help restore national pride and joy by buying the rights to broadcast all England Test matches. Many Reform voters are older and may struggle to afford a Sky subscription just to watch the game they love. The national broadcaster should be broadcasting our nation's sports. 3. Make Laurence Fox Doctor Who After the woke ratings disaster of Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor Who, this cult show is on death row. Former doctor's companion Billie Piper is rumoured to be lined up to be the second female Doctor. A better idea would be to cast Piper's former husband Laurence Fox. As well as possessing the ideal hectic energy, dancing wit and sonorous delivery for the role, Fox was cancelled and lost his acting career after appearing on Question Time, where he said that Britain was not racist. It was, he insisted, the warmest, most welcoming and tolerant country on Earth. A belief which is pretty much universally shared by Reform voters. Uncancelling Fox would be proof of the BBC's new openness to views it finds uncomfortable as well as giving that endangered acting species – the posh white male – a role he would undoubtedly make his own. 4. No more diversity pandering While you're at it, drop the relentless diversity casting of BBC drama. It's patronising and silly. This may come as a shock, but there are actually some police officers in the UK who are not married to a spouse from an ethnic minority – not that you'd know it from watching every single thriller or police procedural. Viewers – both Reform voters and others – would occasionally like to see the country they live in accurately represented, not as it is viewed by a producer who lives in on-trend east London. 5. Report on what voters actually care about BBC News bulletins to feature subjects discussed down the pub not by non-binary Marxist postgraduates called Umberto in Broadcasting House, e.g. our energy bills are horrendous and net zero is clearly madness. Maybe occasionally suggest that it's 'green taxes' not the 'war in Ukraine' which is giving Britain the highest energy bills in the developed world. It's what Reform voters believe after all. 6. Call out the far-Left Every time a journalist uses the term 'far-Right' they must also use 'far-Left' (which, mysteriously, we never hear on the BBC). ie the 'far-Left' Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner. 7. 'Hamas are terrorists' To be stated every time the war with Israel is mentioned, and no equivocation. 8. 'Things That Make You Proud to be British' An ambitious new factual history series which travels back into our nation's past and discovers, astonishingly, that Britons weren't always the biggest bastards imaginable. 10. Did I mention Jeremy Clarkson?
BBC News
05-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Greater Lincolnshire mayor Andrea Jenkyns in the BBC hot seat
The Greater Lincolnshire mayor Dame Andrea Jenkyns has been in the hot seat on BBC Radio Reform UK representative was elected last month after recieving 42% of the Andrea was taking questions from presenter Carla Greene, as well as those from are the four big takeaways from what she had to say – and you can listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds. 1. Trade college to be built Matthew Burke from Grimsby wants to see more job opportunities in North East Lincolnshire. The 33-year-old said: "Look at what other cities are doing and just try and bring that to Grimsby."Bringing investment to the local area is a key role of the Greater Lincolnshire Andrea announced she wanted to build a trade college in the area. She said: "We know right across the country we've got a shortage of plasterers, plumbers, builders. "Lecturers make more money in the private sector than actually teaching so we need to look at that skills gap." 2. Fair funding across the region Dame Andrea was asked specifically what she would be doing to help people in Northern responded: "I don't have this silo approach".The mayor was keen to stress that she would not be favouring one part of the region over another and said her role would help to bring a better said: "The good thing about a mayor is that you've got an overview of the whole county so you can ensure fair funding across the area."You can't have one part missing out." 3. Improvements to the care sector Corrina Pett is a mental health support worker in North Lincolnshire. She said she wanted to see more unemployed people trained to help fill the gaps in the care said: "There shouldn't be a shortage with the amount of unemployed people here."Dame Andrea said she wanted to change attitudes towards the sector."These are valuable roles and they're not to be looked down on."It's about working with the councils, colleges and care providers to ensure school leavers see this career as a viable option." 4. Transport plans Bill, a BBC Radio Humberside listener, asked why the East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire area missed out on billions of pounds worth of investment for transport Rachel Reeves announced on Wednesday funding for tram, train and bus schemes in mayoral authorities across the Midlands, the North and the West Andrea Jenkyns said she wanted to come up with a fully costed transport plan for Greater Lincolnshire and promised to fight the business case for more transport investment for the said: "The Government has given money where they've got Labour mayors and this is why we need to clean up politics."The mayor made transport one of the key pillars of her election campaign by pledging to create investment in major roads such as the A15, A52 and A17, along with "proper integration between buses, trains and cars".HM Treasury for a comment. Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
BBC News
05-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Lincolnshire dental school to train hygienists and nurses
A training centre in Lincolnshire offering courses in dental hygiene and therapy will open in University of Lincoln has been granted funding of £1.5m to establish the facility. Vice chancellor Prof Neal Juster said it was "a first step towards training dentists themselves".The funding has been approved by the Greater Lincolnshire Combined County Authority (GLCCA), with Mayor Andrea Jenkyns saying the award was "great news for residents". Prof Juster said the county was "known as a dental desert" and he hoped to get to a full dental school training dentists one it opens in September 2026 the new Lincolnshire Institute of Dental and Oral Health will be part of the University's Medical will accept around 30 students in its first year and will teach a new BSc in Dental Hygiene and Therapy alongside a foundation course designed to help dental nurses and other healthcare professionals retrain and upskill. The funding has come from the government's Shared Prosperity Fund which was handed to the GLCCA to for the first time since last month's local elections and chaired by Mayor Dame Andrea Jenkyns, it voted unanimously to award the Andrea said she recommended the funding was approved and was "really pleased to get this project off the ground".At the same meeting councillor Ingrid Sheard was voted in as deputy greater Lincolnshire is an elected Lincolnshire County Council member for Spalding Elloe for the Reform UK party. Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
BBC News
24-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Lincolnshire mayor pushes transport plan at meeting with PM
Lincolnshire's mayor has spoken to the prime minister about a need for greater investment in transport and Andrea Jenkyns said it was one of several issues she raised during a meeting with Sir Keir Starmer and other mayors at Lancaster House, London, on prime minister urged regional leaders to drive growth in their Keir said trade deals with the EU and India, as well as a tariffs deal with the US, would have a "big impact" on Lincolnshire industries, including farming and steel. Dame Andrea made transport one of the key pillars of her election campaign by pledging to create "Transport for Greater Lincolnshire", with investment in major roads such as the A15, A52 and A17, along with "proper integration between buses, trains and cars".She said the "very conciliatory" meeting with Sir Keir also included discussions about the agri-foods sector, "upskilling" the economy and "often forgotten coastal communities"."I'll work with whoever possible to ensure we push the Reform agenda and we get money and investment into Lincolnshire," she added. Sir Keir told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that he had asked the mayors about "how we can improve their regions, including Lincolnshire".When asked about local leaders' claims that the county is underfunded and ignored by Whitehall, he promised it would feel the benefit from agreements with other nations."Sometimes deals sound dry and won't be talked about in the pub or the high street, but they will have a big impact," Sir Keir said."Lincolnshire has 39,000 manufacturing jobs and 100,000 in the food sector so this is hugely important."The deals gets rid of red tape for those industries, making it cheaper and quicker to export."He said the UK-US tariff deal would be a lifeline for British Steel in Scunthorpe, after US tariffs on steel were reduced from 25% to prime minister rejected a claim by Martin Hill, the Conservative former leader of Lincolnshire County Council, that the government was "hostile" to rural Keir said the new deal with the EU would help farmers "hugely" by making it "easier and cheaper to sell to the EU". Meanwhile, Dame Andrea said she was planning to form a new trades college in Lincolnshire to train people in plumbing, building and other roles that she said were in demand, but in short supply. Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
Daily Mail
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Reform UK's new mayors take centre stage: Nigel Farage's troops join other regional leaders for talks with Angela Rayner... as Deputy PM warns 'you have to deliver'
Reform UK's newly-elected mayors joined other regional leaders in London today for talks with Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner. Dame Andrea Jenkyns, the Greater Lincolnshire mayor, and Luke Campbell, the Hull and East Yorkshire mayor, both attended the meeting alongside 12 other mayors. It was the first time the Reform politicians had attended Ms Rayner's 'mayoral council' since their stunning election victories at the beginning of this month. Dame Andrea is a former Tory MP and ex-education minister who defected to Reform in November last year. She secured a return to frontline politics by beating her former party by more than 40,000 votes to win the Greater Lincolnshire mayoralty for Nigel Farage 's outfit. Hull-born Mr Campbell is a former professional boxer who won gold for Team GB at the 2012 London Olympics. He was elected Hull and East Yorkshire mayor with a majority of almost 11,000 votes on 1 May. At today's meeting at Lancaster House, Ms Rayner warned Dame Andrea, Mr Campbell and other regional mayors they had to 'deliver' for local voters in their roles. Both Greater Lincolnshire and Hull and East Yorkshire are newly-created combined authorities. According to the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government, the Deputy PM told local leaders they must be held to account as they take back control of decision-making. She urged them to deliver on matters closest to voters' hearts and play their part in the Labour Government's 'Plan for Change'. Ms Rayner also stressed that, with increased power and resources, there would be increased responsibility and expectations for all mayors to deliver real results. She said: 'We are ripping up the long-standing 'Whitehall knows best' rhetoric that has for too long stifled growth with a 'one size fits all' approach. 'That's why we are driving forward deeper, strategic devolution, so mayors can make decisions that will actually deliver for their communities. 'Deeper devolution isn't about empty headline-grabbing promises, but doing the hard yards to make meaningful improvements to the day to day lives of working people in line with our Plan for Change.'
