The Culture Secretary Maria Miller visited Brighton and Hove today (Tuesday 28 May).
Mrs Miller visited the online video games company NCSoft in Brighton, the King Alfred Leisure Centre on Hove seafront and the Brighton Institute of Modern Music (BIMM).
She also went to the Royal Pavilion.
Hove MP Mike Weatherley, a Conservative colleague of the coalition cabinet minister, said: “I was very pleased to show Maria a showcase of what Brighton and Hove’s creative talent has to offer.
“In terms of computing and music, our city has a huge plethora of business providing unique services around the world.
“I know that Maria was particularly impressed with the work at NCSoft and the quality of the music courses available at BIMM.
“I also wanted to highlight to Maria the problems with the King Alfred and the opportunities that this site has to offer.
“I informed Maria all about the successful public meeting on Friday (24 May) and stressed how much local residents want new leisure centre.
“I was also pleased that Jon Horne from Sport England was able to join us and meet with the Secretary of State.
“Maria can now see how Brighton and Hove desperately need new sporting facilities fit for the 21st century.”
I wonder if Maria Miller set foot inside the King Alfred Leisure Centre during her visit? If she did, she would have seen that with its £1.5m refit last year, it is now a very useable facility – far from the ‘dilapidated’ or ‘crumbling’ wreck that Mike Weatherley keeps describing.
There is room on the King Alfred site for additional leisure facilities without knocking down what’s already there. What there isn’t room for are 400 units of housing – and that view came over loud and clear from the meeting last Friday, whether Mr Weatherley wanted to hear it or not.