These 17 MPs are all calling for Channel 4 to move to the West Midlands

Moving to the West Midlands would bring enormous benefits to the city - and also to the broadcaster and its viewers.

That’s the verdict of MPs from across the region, who are backing calls for Channel 4 to move out of its London base.

The Government is considering whether Channel 4 should move and local councils, along with West Midlands mayor Andy Street, have made the case for the broadcaster to come here.

And 17 MPs told us they were throwing their weight behind the campaign.

They said the West Midlands, with its young and diverse population, would make a perfect home for Channel 4.

And they said the whole country would enjoy a better television service if the industry wasn't concentrated in the capital.

Here’s what the MPs said:

Liam Byrne (Lab Hodge Hill): “There is literally no better home for Channel 4 in Britain than Birmingham, which is why Channel 4 should be relocated lock, stock and barrel to our city.”

Black Country MP John Spellar (Lab Warley): “Birmingham is increasingly being recognised as a centre for creative industries with a young, vibrant and diverse population.

“Moving Channel 4 to Birmingham makes a lot of sense and will bring additional high-skilled jobs to the West Midlands.

“It is right that public broadcasters become less London-centric; and that the Government act decisively to stop the drift of talented youngsters to London from West Midlands conurbations – by creating attractive jobs outside of London.”

Mike Wood (Con Dudley South) said: “Along with other MPs I have had meetings with Government Ministers to really push the case for the West Midlands.

“Bringing Channel 4 to the West Midlands would be fantastic for the region and it would also be very good for Channel 4 to get out of the capital and see first hand that there is life in the rest of the country too.”

James Morris (Con Halesowen and Rowley Regis) said: “I think it is absolutely essential that more of our media is based outside of London so that it fully reflects the country as a whole, and that’s why I support the campaign to relocate Channel 4 to the West Midlands. This will provide the region with a unique opportunity to expand its creative industries and create more jobs.”

Adrian Bailey (Lab West Bromwich West): “I am totally supportive of the move of Channel 4 to the Midlands, which has a vibrant, young, multi-cultural community and will benefit both Channel 4 and the Midlands economy.

“I believe that the maximum benefit will be created by locating Channel 4 at the University of Wolverhampton, which draws heavily on the local Black Country community for its student population.

“With Coventry as the City of Culture, Birmingham as the basis for the BBC and Wolverhampton as the base for Channel 4, we would have a balanced cultural impact across the Midlands.”

Emma Reynolds (Lab Wolverhampton North East) said: “I am urging Channel 4 to relocate to Wolverhampton and the West Midlands.

"Our region has a huge amount to offer Channel 4 - talented people, diverse communities and great transport links to other parts of the country. This investment would be a shot in the arm for the local economy bringing jobs and growth.”

Pat McFadden (Lab Wolverhampton South East) said: “Wolverhampton would be an ideal location for it.

“The decentralisation of some of these big institutions outside London would be a good thing for the ��Ƶ.

“I’d be very pleased to see Channel 4 come to the West Midlands.

“And I think Wolverhampton would be an ideal location for it.”

Eleanor Smith (Lab Wolverhampton South West) said: ““There is a consensus that Channel 4 should come to the West Midlands, the region offers Channel 4 many advantages, and the move would create thousands of job opportunities.

“However, as a Wolverhampton MP, I am strongly in favour of it coming to Wolverhampton, placing it within the Black Country.”

Ian Austin (Lab Dudley North) said: “Bringing Channel Four to the region would be brilliant. It would bring billions of pounds of investment but also boost the region’s creative industries enabling us to attract exciting new hi-tech industries and well-paid, highly skilled new jobs.

“I’m right behind the campaign to bring Channel Four to the West Midlands and I’m sure all the MPs in the All-Party Group for the West Midlands which I chair will want to do all they can to support it too.”

Tom Watson (Lab West Bromwich East), Labour’s Shadow Culture Secretary, said: “I know a number of cities across the West Midlands have put in a bid to be the new home for some of Channel 4’s staff.

“We are a fantastically diverse and creative region and if Channel 4 agrees a move from London, the West Midlands would be an obvious place for them to relocate, and I’m sure Channel 4 would flourish here.

“As well as staff relocation, the important thing that Channel 4 can do for our region is spend more of its commissioning budget here. Making and setting more brilliant TV in our region will be a good thing for Channel 4 and a great thing for the West Midlands.”

Birmingham Yardley MP Jess Phillips (Lab) argued a move would be good for the viewer and for Birmingham.

She said: Birmingham is full of stories rarely told and creative talent that is untapped. I live a half life between London and Birmingham and have been so surprised about how London centric the whole country is.

“The lens we look through when we turn on our telly is skewed badly as it is dominated completely by people who live in one place. I notice it now more and more.

“I remember Pebble Mill and Central TV when I was a kid, I remember as the buildings fell to decay as the industry left our city. Most of the kids now in my constituency wouldn’t even consider a creative job in film or TV as they have no exposure what so ever.

“Our telly will become boring and samey unless we use different a lens from time to time.”

Khalid Mahmood (Lab Perry Barr) said: “We are at the heart of the country and are seeing a massive investment in infrastructure with HS2 putting us less than an hour from London.

“Big banks like HSBC have seen the sense of moving. Channel 4 can afford much better studio facilities here than in London. It’s an obvious decision for them.”

Steve McCabe (Lab Selly Oak) urged the Government to force the TV channel to relocate it if refused to move out of London voluntarily.

He said: “I agree with the former culture secretary Karen Bradley that Channel 4 should move and they should come to Birmingham. There is far too much concentration of public broadcasting money in London as it is. If the Channel 4 executives don’t want to move, they should be forced to, or replaced with executives who do.

“We have the facilities here, it would be a good move for Channel 4 as well as for Birmingham.”

Eddie Hughes (Con, Walsall North) said: “I fully support the campaign to move Channel 4 to the West Midlands. The region has been overlooked since the BBC moved from Pebble Mill, and it’s time this is readdressed. The industry is still too London-centric.

“The people of the West Midlands, including my constituents, pay a large amount in licence fees every year and deserve some of that money reinvested in the region. We deserve more locally produced content and a move here would not only be a boost for jobs, but would create secondary jobs too.”

Julian Knight (Con, Solihull) said: “I am a long-standing campaigner for a better deal for our region from Britain’s national broadcasters.

“Very little television is currently made here compared to places such as the BBC’s hubs in London, Manchester, and Cardiff, so relocating Channel 4 to the West Midlands offers the Government an important opportunity to rebalance the media landscape and give local licence-fee payers a better deal.

“I have previously argued in favour of the move in Parliament, both in special Westminster debates and at ministerial questions in the House of Commons, and will continue to press ministers to recognise the need for a fairer deal for Solihull and the West Midlands.”

Andrew Mitchell (Con, Sutton Coldfield) told our reporter he “strongly supports the campaign to encourage Channel 4 to move to Birmingham”.

Richard Burden (Lab, Northfield) said: “The argument to bring Channel 4 to Birmingham is stronger than ever today.

“Britain’s national broadcasters have been far too London-centric for too long. Not only does the Midlands deserve our fair share of investment from the ��Ƶ’s national broadcasters but moving its Headquarters to Birmingham would also be a smart and forward-looking choice for Channel 4.

“We are a creative city of immense talent. We have a growing reputation for expertise in digital media that has been recognised by the BBC’s decision to base much of its digital own innovation here.

“With nearly 45 per cent of our population under the age of 25, we are also the youngest city in in Europe and we are one of the most diverse. Channel 4 prides itself on being a broadcaster that looks to the future.

“A move to Birmingham today would be a clear sign of C4’s willingness to embrace that future and to seize the opportunities of tomorrow.”