Community Football Clubs

Lord Ouseley Excerpts

Wednesday 28th March 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

The noble Lord raises a very important point in relation to fit and proper persons—and, again, I will make sure that the Minister for Sport is aware of the concerns expressed in this House when looking at this issue. In order to ensure that the House is aware of this, I will simply say that many successful football players of great wealth are helping—I think that Rio Ferdinand is an example in relation to Dulwich. However, the noble Lord makes a valuable point.

[Lord Ouseley (CB)]

My Lords, I am delighted to hear that the Minister for Sport is trying to rescue the situation. My concern in relation to this Question is the effect, over a number of years, of the loss of playing fields that have been sold off by local authorities, having been encouraged to do so by previous Governments, notwithstanding the commitment to replace them with new provision. What evidence is there of the new provision, and what impact is the loss of playing fields having on young people and their health?

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

The noble Lord is right to raise that issue. He will be aware that Sport England is a statutory consultee where a playing field or sports facility is threatened with closure. The latest statistics show that 1,138 out of 1,200 planning applications in 2015-16 resulted in improved or safeguarded sports provision. I think that that is about 95%. So it is not 100%, but I hope it will give the noble Lord some comfort, because it is a very high percentage.