Lisa Nandy threatens crackdown on entertainment industry after David Walliams allegations

Culture Secretary could force broadcasters, publishers and production companies to join an independent watchdog amid growing pressure to protect women and whistleblowers following the David Walliams allegations and Russell Brand’s imprisonment

Lisa Nandy, the Culture Secretary, is preparing to threaten the entertainment industry with compulsory regulation unless broadcasters, publishers and production companies introduce stronger safeguards against sexual misconduct and harassment.

The government is considering forcing companies to join the Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority (CIISA), an independent body established to tackle bullying, harassment and discrimination, if industry leaders fail to take sufficient action, according to BBC Newsnight.

Nandy is expected to deliver the warning at a meeting with senior figures from broadcasting, film, publishing and entertainment next week, following allegations of sexual misconduct against comedian David Walliams and the imprisonment of Russell Brand for rape and sexual assault.

Participation in CIISA is currently voluntary, but ministers are understood to be increasingly concerned that existing arrangements are failing to protect women and whistleblowers.

According to reports, Nandy will urge industry leaders to take responsibility for improving safeguarding practices themselves, while warning that the government could intervene if their response is deemed inadequate.

She reportedly told BBC Newsnight that she was summoning senior industry figures to “draw a line” in the sand following a succession of high-profile sexual misconduct cases.

Her intervention follows a three-year investigation by The Guardian and ITV News into allegations against Walliams, the former Britain’s Got Talent judge and bestselling children’s author.

Several women have accused Walliams of sexual misconduct and abusing his position, including allegations that he groomed teenagers. One woman has described an alleged encounter with him when she was 15 as sexual assault.

Walliams denies the allegations and previously said he was “not a sexual predator” and had not “broken the law”.

Lawyers representing Walliams have denied that he behaved inappropriately or harassed young women in the workplace. They also said he had never been warned or disciplined over messaging runners, according to The Guardian.

The allegations became public after Walliams unsuccessfully sought a court order preventing their publication.

READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE – Comic Relief confirms David Walliams is no longer an honorary trustee and has ‘no formal association’ with charity. The European also reveals the comedian’s previously unreported departure from children’s hospice Rainbows in 2023, attributed to “logistics and other commitments”, as fresh allegations rock British showbusiness following Russell Brand’s imprisonment. 

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_{Main image: Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy addresses a Labour Party conference. She is preparing to warn entertainment industry leaders that tougher safeguarding rules could become compulsory following allegations of sexual misconduct against David Walliams. Photograph: Wiganer1995 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)}