Digital, Culture, Media and Sport ministers answered Oral
Questions in the Common yesterday.
Extracts
Diversity: National Cricket Teams
(Liverpool, Riverside)
(Lab)
7. What steps the Government are taking to ensure diverse
representation in (a) women’s and (b) men’s national cricket
teams to help tackle racism in that sport.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Digital, Culture,
Media and Sport ()
We must ensure that cricket, and indeed all sports, are
accessible to people from all backgrounds. National team
selection is not something the Government have control over—that
is for governing bodies to decide—but I am sure we can all agree
that the primary basis should be talent. We need that diverse
pool of talent. I have had positive conversations with the
England and Wales Cricket Board and the county clubs on ensuring
that talent pathways are fully open to the diverse range of
people who play the game at grassroots level.
The Minister makes some interesting points, but does he agree
that actions speak louder than words? The game has been described
as institutionally racist. Can a review of dressing room culture,
being undertaken by Clare Connor, fix the deeply entrenched
under-representation of black women cricketers when Ebony
Rainford-Brent, the first black member of the women’s cricket
team, said she had never been made to feel different until she
entered the cricket world?
I agree with the hon. Lady on those concerns. There is a lot more
to do in cricket and across sport as a whole. I have met the
county chairmen and , as well as having dialogue with
the ECB. I believe progress is being made, but I agree completely
with her: I want to see actions, not just words.
(Solihull) (Con)
I refer Members to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial
Interests. Does my hon. Friend share my disquiet that , Yorkshire’s new chair, has been
forced to publicly call out a group of individuals for seeking to
delay and derail vital reforms of the club in order to combat the
scourge of racism? Does my hon. Friend agree that, in order to
support in his fight, the ECB should
state that international cricket can return to Headingley but on
the strict proviso that members back Lord Patel’s reforms, we see
a dilution of the power of the Graves Trust, and that they ignore
the siren calls of those who wish to retain the shameful status
quo?
I thank the Chair of the Select Committee for his and the
Committee’s work in this area. The decision to bring
internationals back to Yorkshire is for the ECB and I have to
respect that, but I have met , even just yesterday, and
personally I am somewhat comforted and assured about the progress
being made in Yorkshire. Indeed, I have seen good progress being
made in cricket overall, but I want to see a lot more. I
reiterate that the decision is for the ECB, but I am sure that it
will have heard my hon. Friend’s comments.
Local Tennis Courts
(Gloucester) (Con)
9. What progress her Department has made on implementing its
plans to refurbish local tennis courts, announced on 2 October
2021.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Digital, Culture,
Media and Sport ()
We are fortunate in this country to have some of the world’s top
tennis talent, including Emma Raducanu, Alfie Hewett and Gordon
Reid, and I should take this opportunity to wish our athletes in
Beijing the very best of luck—we have talent across so many
sports. At the spending review, the Government announced £30.1
million to renovate park tennis courts in the UK, in partnership
with the Lawn Tennis Association. Plans involved reviving over
4,500 courts, including those in poor or unplayable condition at
more than 1,500 venues.
I am grateful to the Minister. That superb mapping exercise
across the country by the LTA to benefit, as he said, over 4,500
public courts could be of huge benefit to families, sport,
health, local pride and community improvements. My question is a
nice and simple one: when will the application forms be ready?
Will my hon. Friend share with us some good news?
I thank my hon. Friend for his excitement about our work on
tennis courts. He never misses an opportunity to ask that
question—I cannot venture into the Tea Room without him doing
so—but I appreciate his persistence. Delivery will commence in
the next financial year, from April 2022, because I am aware, as
he is, that this will make a really big difference to tennis in
this country.
(Huddersfield)
(Lab/Co-op)
May I ask the Minister to take this even more seriously? I know
that the English team has not being doing well in some sports,
but can we look seriously at the opportunities to get a much
broader range of young people coming in to play tennis and, in
particular, cricket? There seems to be a real difficulty for
children in many schools to pursue cricket and tennis, and it
seems that most of the people who end up rising to the top come
from very privileged backgrounds.
The hon. Member raises some important points. We do punch above
our weight in global sport and that is partly due to the success
and investment from Sport England and, indeed,
UK Sport. We will be refreshing the school sport
and activity action plan and working closely with the Department
for Education, focusing very much on engaging young children in a
whole variety of sports, for the reasons that he expressed.
Mr Speaker
Such as rugby league.
Topical Questions
(South East Cornwall)
(Con)
Swimming is massively important not just for health reasons, but
for safety in our island nation. Saltash swimming pool is an
excellent facility. What more can the Government do to ensure the
long-term future of such facilities?
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Digital, Culture,
Media and Sport ()
I know that my hon. Friend is passionate about this issue,
because we spoke about it when I visited her constituency last
year. She is right that swimming is a vital life skill, as well
as being very good for our physical and mental health. We have
provided the sport sector with £1 billion of financial support
through the pandemic, and launched the £100 million national
leisure recovery fund precisely to try to ensure that swimming
pools stay open. Further investment through Sport
England and other bodies is forthcoming. I would be
happy to facilitate further discussions between my hon. Friend
and Sport England.
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