Football Club Governance: Fans’ Views
(Blackburn) (Lab)
1. What steps she is taking to help ensure the views of fans are
taken into account in the running of football clubs.
The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport ()
Fans are absolutely at the heart of football. As we set out in
our White Paper, we are introducing an independent regulator for
English football clubs, which will put fans back at the centre of
how football is run. The regulator will require every club to
meet a minimum standard of engagement and will ensure that fans
have veto rights on issues such as a change of badge or home
shirt colour, and are consulted on any stadium sale. Those are
strong protections for fans across the country.
I agree with the Secretary of State. The Blackburn Rovers
Supporters Trust is an integral part of Blackburn’s community and
is at the heart of everything that happens. The trust was pleased
that the White Paper eventually came forward, and welcomed most
aspects of it, but it was disappointed that the Government did
not make shadow boards or the golden share a requirement of the
IREF’s licensing system. It feels that the reforms will not
achieve the spirit of the fan-led review if fans do not have a
voice. Will the Secretary of State consider, with the
participation of supporters trusts, making shadow boards a
minimum requirement for the football regulator’s licensing
system?
What the hon. Lady says about football clubs being at the heart
of their community is the case up and down the country. Our
reforms make sure that fans have an integral say in matters that
affect them. We are already seeing, and will see, shadow boards
at premier league level, but I am confident that the changes that
we are bringing in will give fans a greater say in football.
(North West Leicestershire)
(Ind)
Can the Secretary of State outline to the House how the
independent regulator will help with the financial sustainability
of clubs, and how it will limit the power of owners, who may wish
to gamble with their club’s future to reach the premier league
and may fail, as was the case recently with Derby County?
The hon. Member makes an important point. Financial stability is
one reason that we have brought in an independent regulator: to
ensure that clubs are stable and are not destroyed, which then
destroys communities, as I mentioned. The independent regulator
will ensure financial stability and there will be owners’ and
directors’ tests to ensure that we know who owns clubs and that
they have the funds to maintain them.
Inclusion in Sport
(Harrogate and Knaresborough)
(Con)
3. What steps her Department is taking to help improve inclusion
in sport.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and
Sport ()
The Government believe that the opportunity to play sport and get
physically active should be available to everyone. Sport is
central to our national cultural identity, so it must be
welcoming to all. We are working closely with Sport England, UK
Sport and national governing bodies to improve inclusion across
the sector, from the grassroots to the elite level.
I thank the Minister for that answer. I am a patron of Harrogate
Gateway FC, which is a football club specifically for people with
learning disabilities who just wish to play the sport they love.
How does my right hon. Friend work with national and regional
sporting bodies to ensure there are clubs and teams in all our
communities that enable participation in sport, with all of the
benefits that flow from that?
I join my hon. Friend in saying thank you to Harrogate Gateway
football club for the work it is doing in helping people with
learning disabilities. Sport England recently awarded £1.5
million to Special Olympics GB to help provide innovative
opportunities, and inclusion in sport is an integral part of the
work we are doing. I am delighted that, yesterday, we ensured
equal opportunities for girls and boys at school, announcing over
£600 million for school sports. Our forthcoming sport strategy
will set out further detail about how we want to make sport more
inclusive.
(Denton and Reddish)
(Lab)
The Government’s failure to include swimming pools and leisure
centres in the list of energy-intensive industries that would
qualify for support with their energy bills post April is leading
to a number of these centres being closed. What assessment has
the Minister made of the impact of the closure of swimming pools
and leisure centres, particularly on some of the poorest
communities in England? What is he doing to get the Treasury to
change its mind?
I have had extensive engagement both with the sector and the
all-party parliamentary group on swimming, as well as with the
Local Government Association recently, to understand exactly what
the situation is, and I have to say that it is different in
different parts of the country. We are making an assessment, and
I am having further discussions with colleagues across Government
about what may be a plan for the future.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Manchester, Withington)
(Lab)
Following the Lionesses’ stunning success in the Euros, it is
important that we capitalise on the momentum behind women’s
football, so we welcome the Government’s commitment to equal
access to school sport for boys and girls—we have been calling
for that for a long time. How are the Government going to make
sure that schools have the facilities to be able to deliver that
and how are they going to measure it?
As I said a moment ago, I am delighted that we made the
announcement yesterday of over £600 million—it is a significant
investment—to ensure that the provision of PE and sport in school
is available and that there is equal access for boys and girls.
We are also working on a kitemark, so that we will ensure that
the quality of the provision is—
Mr Speaker
Order. Can the hon. Member for North West Leicestershire () come back into the Chamber
until there have been two full questions? I have one more Member
waiting, too. Carry on, Minister.
I think I have said it, actually.
