CHeering the three lines on in Berlin was the culture, media and sports secretary, Lisa Nandi, who joins me now. Lisa, thank you so much for joining us. Late night, early morning, so thank you for your time. You attended the match with the prime minister, Kia Starmer. What's your reaction to last night's results?

Well, I said before the match even started that no matter what the result, the England team had already done as proud. I think there was definitely that sentiment in the stadium, not just the team, but the fans cheering us on. You could hear the noise from the rooftops. It felt like a really electric occasion. And it's amazing that we got to the final, that there we were, beaming out to millions of people all over the world and playing really top class football. Obviously, I was disappointed with the result. I think nobody was more disappointed than the prime minister, who was very famously a huge football fan. But it was an incredible achievement to get there. And that's why on 2 hours sleep, I'm here in the studio today not only to say thank you to a young team that have given us such magic over the last few months, but also to say that after the great successes of the Lionesses and the Three Lions, that it's now time for government to step up and show that we'll invest in grassroots football, protect our clubs and make sure that more young fans watching that game last night will know that they will have the opportunities go on and play for their country in the future.

Well, you did actually tweet last night, didn't you, straight after the game, saying their legacy, meaning the England team's legacy, needs to be felt across the grassroots game. How are you planning to spend money on grassroots football? What's the plan?

Well, currently, the funding for grassroots football comes to an end in April and we have signaled our commitment today to ensure that that continues. Grassroots facilities, as I know from my constituency in Wigan, are so, so vital for young people, young boys, but also young girls, who are starting to play football in much larger numbers, to be able to come through and get those skills and to be able to go on and achieve their dreams. But we're also committing to other things today, including making it far easier for clubs, local clubs, to take over their grassroots pitches. We've got an army of volunteers across the country who deserve greater recognition and we intend to give it to them, but also want the right to be able to take on those grassroots facilities, to look after them, to care for them, and to hand them down through generations to the next generation so that they can be protected and we're getting behind that. The FA leads on that program, and we're getting behind that today to ensure that that reaches far, far more people than is currently the case.

Okay, we're just looking at pictures now. While you're talking of Gareth Southgate consoling his players last night, much talk about his future, do you think that he should stay on as England manager?

Well, it's not for me to say. He's, you know, I admire him enormously, and I'm. I'm sure that he'll reach a decision after spending a bit of time thinking about it. He said last night that's what he wanted to do. And I. But what I would just say is that the contribution that Gareth Southgate has already made to football is enormous on the pitch, off the pitch, but also to put together that incredible team of young footballers, drawn from every community across the country, who look and sound and feel like modern Britain. When kids were turning on their tv sets last night across England, every single one of them will have been able to see themselves reflected in that team. And in doing so, he's told an inclusive story about the country that we can be, at times, with the politics that we've had. It's felt very difficult for people to feel part of our national story. And it's firmly my intention that this government will be different. We'll be far more Gareth Southgate and far less Michael Gove. The era of division needs to end, and I think this team, and Gareth Southgate in particular, has shown the leadership that we need in some really difficult times for this country.

So we owe him an enormous debt, whatever he decides to do in the future.

Ok. Well, everyone has seen the shocking images from the United States, and you sat next to the prime minister at the football match last night. Do you know what he said to the former president Donald Trump in his phone call to him?

Yes. Well, he was pleased to be able to speak to President Trump as we arrived in Berlin to express his sympathy and his horror at what had happened. To reiterate that there's no place for violence in our politics, and also to express his condolences to the victims of that shooting. I think most world leaders have joined together in doing so. I think many of them were trying to speak to President Trump last night. We've just been through an election here in the UK, which is the most toxic that I can ever remember being part of. And I'm really pleased that we have a prime minister and a government that is firmly committed to ensuring that wherever violence is found that we utterly condemn it as our first and our last response.

Do you, the government, have concerns about the political situation in the states? You've got an ailing president, you've got a candidate who is being shot at. This isn't normal.

Well, it's obviously incredibly concerning to Americans and to the rest of the world. Watching the shooting of Donald Trump last night was appalling and extremely worrying when you consider that we've had a lot of division and hatred and poison spreading into politics on both sides of the Atlantic and across Europe as well in recent times. But obviously, the choice of who becomes the next president of the United States is not for the british government, it's for the people of the United States. And having worked very closely with partners over in the US in recent times, including on a recent visit to Washington, DC, to discuss support for Ukraine, I'm very well aware that the british relationship with the US matters. And it matters regardless of who is in the White House. We have a very long and deep friendship on security and defense, on tackling issues like climate change with many of the metro mayors from across the UK. None of those things will change with the incumbent of the White House. And it's our intention, as the newly elected government here in the UK, that whoever wins that election, that that relationship continues.

Lisa Nandi, culture secretary, appreciate you've had no sleep at all, but thank you very much for joining us on breakfast this morning.

Thanks so much.