Asked by
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what advice they have given to
the Premier League about Project Restart.
The Question was considered in a Virtual Proceeding via video
call.
(Lab)
My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on
the Order Paper and refer the House to my football interests as
declared on the register.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for
Digital, Culture, Media and Sport () (Con)
My Lords, on 13 May the Government published guidance on GOV.UK
allowing the phased return of sport and recreation, in line with
the latest medical guidance. The guidance defines a set of
recommended minimum practice for step 1 of return-to-training
guidance for elite athletes. Public Health England has not
produced specific advice on Project Restart but has engaged
collaboratively in the working group and has cleared the step 1
guidance document. Ultimately, the decision to restart the
Premier League is one not for government but for the Premier
League and its member clubs.
My Lords, I am sure football fans would welcome the resumption of
live games on TV, particularly if some are shown free-to-air on
the BBC. But what will happen if a player or a member of a club’s
coaching staff tests positive for Covid-19? Will the entire team
be quarantined and thus unable to play any scheduled matches?
Given the desperate financial plight of many clubs in the English
Football League and the levels below that, how will the
Government ensure that the Secretary of State’s stated aim to
“ensure finances from the game’s resumption support the wider
football family”
is achieved?
All the details on the impacts if either an athlete or a member
of staff at a club were to fall ill with Covid are being worked
out. A clear framework is being set up, with each club having a
member of staff who is the responsible Covid-19 officer and a
Covid-19 medical officer who will lead on any suspected or
confirmed cases and make sure there is medical oversight for
returning to work.
On funding for the wider leagues and clubs, the Government have
been very clear that we expect any finances secured through the
resumption of the professional game to benefit the wider football
family.
(Lab)
My Lords, like the Minister, we all want to see the Premier
League season complete, but not to the detriment of players,
support staff and those involved at all levels of the game. Can
the Minister comment further on that? Can she explain precisely
what measures the Government intend to take to secure the
financial security of not just the Premier League and
Championship but the other leagues and, importantly, the women’s
game through the WSL?
I will start with the last point first. I know that in all the
work my ministerial colleagues, including the Secretary of State,
have done, there has been a real focus on making sure that we do
not lose momentum in the women’s game. That is very much front of
mind.
On the development of the guidance, there are three levels. The
step 1 guidance sets out the risk assessment mitigation plan;
step 2 and step 3 guidance will be produced regarding
close-contact training and games potentially being played behind
closed doors. Through medical advice from government and Public
Health England, we are supporting the football authorities as
they take these decisions.
On funding, I have already mentioned that we see this as part of
a wider football family and welcome the moves the Premier League
has already made to advance money to the English Football League.
(LD)
Will the Minister give us a little more guidance about the
take-up of responsibility of existing projects that are run by
Premier League clubs and indeed other elite-level clubs: that is,
youth engagement, development of junior teams, and so on? Can the
Minister give us an assurance that the Government will not take
kindly to these being dumped as non-profit-making?
There is no intention of the Government seeing these dumped.
However, certainly as regards football, it is the responsibility
of the FA to oversee the grass-roots game. The Government have
made major moves in support for businesses, and we have also seen
important investment from Sport England at a community level. We
are keeping a very close eye on this.
(Non-Afl)
We are the biggest industry in the world in terms of football,
and the Premier League is the world-leading league. Many clubs,
particularly down the football pyramid, are on the cusp of
economic disaster. Would the Minister agree that it would be
economically prudent to allow the league to complete its season
and keep the integrity of the football system that we have, and
then we can deal with the problems of next season?
It is the Football Authority’s responsibility to agree and
finalise the details and to decide with its member clubs whether
they go forward. The Government are doing everything we can to
support and provide advice, but it is ultimately the FA’s
responsibility.
(Lab)
I declare my football interests as in the register. The Minister
will know that, below the English Football League, hundreds of
football clubs rely on unpaid officials and volunteers and are
beginning to struggle financially in the light of the current
crisis and the effect it is having on their income and future
sponsorship. Did I hear the Minister say that she felt that the
Premier League had already done enough regarding what it had
given to the English Football League? I am talking about clubs
below that. I would like to know how the Government intend to
ensure that a meaningful percentage of the finances from the
resumption of Premier League matches this season goes on support
for the wider football family. I do not want to know that that is
the Government’s intention; I want to know how they intend to
ensure that that happens.
I echo what the noble Lord said in thanking local clubs very much
for the work that they are currently doing in their local
communities. The noble Lord is right that grass-roots football is
an absolutely integral part of community life. I did not say that
the Government felt that the moves the Premier League had made
were enough but rather that we were encouraged by them and that
we definitely see that financial relief for the upper levels of
the game should be felt by the whole football family. We are
working closely with all levels of the game to try to work this
through in some detail.
The Lord Speaker ()
? He is not here, so we
will go on to the noble Lord, .
(LD)
My Lords, I was quite astounded to hear the Minister say at the
beginning of her Answer that it would not be a decision by the
Government—those were her actual words—on restarting the Premier
League. Player interests appear to be almost incidental in
whether the league starts or not. Is she aware that professional
athletes, in particular soccer players, have a significantly
different physiology from the general public and that their
exposure to a lot of viruses can lead to conditions such as
myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart with some
life-threatening damage? What advice have the Government actually
given through their professional advisers to professional
footballers and in this decision-making so that we can have a
safe return to soccer sometime in June, or perhaps July? Will she
put that advice in the Library so that we can read what the
scientists have said to the Government?
I will have to check for the noble Lord exactly what is publicly
available. However, we have been working closely with the Chief
Medical Officers for a range of sports, including elite football,
and those medical officers have a deep understanding of the
issues that individual athletes have. We are absolutely clear
that competitive football can return behind closed doors only
when it is safe to do so. If I gave any other impression, I
apologise.
The Lord Speaker
We will go on just for a minute. I call the noble Lord, .
(Lab Co-op)
My Lords, I know that sport is devolved but international
relations are reserved to the UK Government, so will they make
representations to UEFA to investigate why the Scottish Premier
League is not carrying out its clear instructions to complete the
top-tier domestic competition? It is flouting what UEFA has
recommended.
My understanding is that it is up to the Scottish Premier League
to agree with its member clubs the way forward, taking into
account the particular opportunities and challenges that they
face.
