Claim daeead05Checked 21 Jul 2026
Not Enough EvidenceOn the truth scale
Inconclusive — not enough public evidence to rate.
“Sir Alan Haselhurst engaged in intense lobbying.”
—Mrs Kemi BadenochConservativeCon / North West Essex·Engagements·03 Jun 2026Factual · historical current chronological
Reasoning & Evidence21 Jul 2026
The claim asserts that Sir Alan Haselhurst's "intense lobbying" is the reason Sky Sports channels are available on the parliamentary TV network.
What public evidence confirms:
- Sky Sports channels (Sky Sports 1 and 2) are indeed available through the Parliamentary Television Service, as documented in parliamentary written answers from 2013 (e.g., the Attorney-General's Office and Department for Education both confirmed access to Sky Sports channels via the service at no additional fee).
- Sir Alan Haselhurst had a well-documented passion for cricket: he chaired the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Cricket, proposed an Early Day Motion in 1992 about television coverage of cricket's World Cup, and was involved in parliamentary broadcasting matters as Chairman of Ways and Means (1997–2010), during which time he also chaired the Parliamentary Broadcast Unit Ltd (PARBUL).
What public evidence does NOT confirm:
- No public source I could find specifically documents that Haselhurst personally lobbied for Sky Sports to be added to the parliamentary TV network, nor that his lobbying was the decisive reason for its inclusion. The origins of that decision appear to be an internal parliamentary matter not documented in publicly available proceedings, committee reports, or official records.
Assessment: The factual predicate — that Sky Sports is on the parliamentary TV network — is true, and Haselhurst's interest in cricket and involvement in parliamentary broadcasting is well-established. However, the specific causal claim that his "intense lobbying" was the reason for Sky Sports' inclusion rests on what appears to be private knowledge or personal anecdote (Badenoch was his successor as MP for Saffron Walden and likely heard this from him directly). This cannot be corroborated or contradicted by public evidence.
Sources: UK Parliament API (Parliamentary Television Service written answers, https://api.parliament.uk/query/resource?uri=https%3A%2F%2Fid.parliament.uk%2FhIA91bZW and https://api.parliament.uk/query/resource?uri=https%3A%2F%2Fid.parliament.uk%2FUgPwArHf); House of Commons Administration Committee report on Television: Rules of Coverage (https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmadmin/14/1403.htm); EDM 723 (1991-92) proposed by Alan Haselhurst (https://www.edms.org.uk/1991-92/723.htm); BBC News obituary for Lord Haselhurst (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce3p95wyrl9o); Wikipedia – Alan Haselhurst (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Haselhurst)
From speech
I echo the Prime Minister’s words on Lance Corporal James Freeman and about the Royal Navy helicopter crash in Devon. I also send my deepest condolences to the family and friends of Henry Nowak. The circumstances around Henry’s wrongful arrest and tragic murder must be a wake-up call to the entire country and our institutions that every life matters, and it is the responsibility of everyone in this House to bring people together, not divide them. Mr Speaker, with your permission, I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to Sir Alan Haselhurst—Lord Haselhurst—who died on Monday. Sir Alan served Parliament for over 50 years, eight of them in the Lords and 40 years as my predecessor as MP for Saffron Walden, while from 1970 to 1974 he was the Member of Parliament for Middleton and Prestwich. He was respected on all sides of this House, and was elected multiple times as your predecessor as Deputy Speaker, before he concluded in the other place. Apart from serving his constituents, Sir Alan’s greatest passion in Parliament and perhaps in life was cricket, as you said, Mr Speaker. He was chairman of the all-party parliamentary group on cricket, a role which he encouraged me to take up and which I graciously declined, telling him I knew absolutely nothing about cricket. However, I think colleagues should know that Sir Alan’s intense lobbying is the reason that Sky Sports can be found on the parliamentary TV network. There is so much to say, but just to let everyone know, he was a good and kind man and he will be very much missed. My thoughts are with his wife Angela, his children Mark, David and Emma, and his grandchildren. May I ask the Prime Minister by how much the welfare bill has risen since he came to office?
Sources opened