The DCMS Committee has welcomed Government action on
recommendations made in its report on
concussion in sport which examined the links between sport and
long-term brain injury.
The Government described the report and its recommendations as a
‘valuable call to action’ on how to make sport safer for
everyone.
In its formal
response to the Committee, Ministers welcomed the
breadth of the Committee’s report, which not only looked at elite
and professional sport, but also grassroots, school and community
activities.
The Government has agreed to a UK protocol for concussion across
all sport with all four nations developing a shared set of
protocols, based on the Scottish model. Ministers have also
accepted a recommendation to set up a sports concussion forum to
evaluate emerging science on the issue.
On elite sport the Government accepted in full the recommendation
to mandate UK Sport to take a governance role in assuring that
all sports it funds raise awareness on the dangers of concussion
effectively. The Government will work with UK Sport and Sport
England on how to ensure sports make use of the new set of shared
concussion protocols.
Crucially, the response accepts the need for a proactive role by
Government to ensure that participants in sport are aware of the
risks involved and that there is a precautionary approach to risk
management.
Ministers agree with the recommendation that it is time to move
past the concerns about how regulation may change sports and take
real and effective action.
Chair's comment
Chair of the DCMS Committee said:
“I welcome the action by Government in pledging to take action on
a number of our recommendations in full and in part because this
will result in a much greater awareness of the risks of
concussion in sport.
“Whether an elite athlete or a Saturday footballer, too much has
been left to chance with the results of serious brain-injury for
those involved.
“It is right that publicly funded sports accept responsibility
for the real risks that players are exposed to, that the right
protocols are in place, and that they make people aware of the
dangers involved.
“The Government has responded to our call for urgent steps to be
taken to make sport safer for everyone.”
