Draft Gambling Act 2005 (Operating Licence Conditions) (Amendment) Regulations 2024 Draft Gambling Levy Regulations 2025

Louie French Excerpts

Wednesday 29th January 2025 General Committees

[Mr Louie French (Old Bexley and Sidcup) (Con)]

It is always a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Twigg. Almost a year ago, the previous Conservative Government, having commissioned the Gambling Act review in 2020 and published the White Paper in 2023, announced the introduction of a new £2 maximum stake for under-25s playing online, as well as a £5 limit for those aged over 25. The previous Government took that decision following a specific 10-week consultation period in which most respondents agreed with the proposals in the gambling White Paper to introduce statutory limits for online slot games. That was, as Members know, to help counter the specific increased risk of harm and life-changing losses from online slot games that had developed since the introduction of the Gambling Act 2005. It was also to help level the playing field between land-based operators and those based online, as the Minister has acknowledged.

After more than a decade and a half, all parties recognised that the Gambling Act was analogue in a digital age and that reforms were needed. Unlike what the Labour Government are announcing today, the reforms proposed by the Conservative Government were relatively modest and sought to balance the need to better support those at risk of gambling harms with the safe enjoyment of gambling, as experienced by millions across the country in a sector that is a key contributor to our economy. That is the point in which I want to press the Minister with this first set of regulations.

It appears that the Government are continuing to miss the opportunity to promote growth in the sector and to engage in the modernisation of casinos more broadly. I have raised the issue previously, and, trying to be constructive in opposition, I do so again now. As the Minister knows, the White Paper set out a number of modest but important modernisation measures for land-based casinos to allow operators to continue to deliver a first-class leisure and entertainment experience offer to their customers. That included reforms to the formula of what type and quantity of machines venues could have, as well as allowing sports betting for all casinos, which I know from my own travels is common in other countries.

I have met a range of operators from across the across the country already and it is clear that there is still a desire to invest in those businesses, despite the significant headwinds and operational costs coming from the Chancellor’s Budget, which is pushing many into the red. Are the Government planning to reintroduce the draft instrument on casino modernisation, which I understand had already been drafted by the Department before the election? If so, when can we expect that, and if not, why not?

On the same theme of growth and investment, in light of the Chancellor’s rather strange comments that the Government will be reaching out to state regulators for ideas for growth, what discussion has the Minister’s Department had with the Gambling Commission on ideas for growth? Finally, what review mechanism will the Government put in place to ensure that these changes to online stakes do not further fuel the growth in the online black market? I know that many Members will share my concerns about this growth in the gambling black market, which I am afraid to say I did warn about both before and since taking up this brief.

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[Mr French]

It is still a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship today, Mr Twigg. Unfortunately, that pleasure does not extend to the regulations that we are now discussing. The Labour Government have spectacularly managed to take a set of draft regulations that were largely settled and agreed on, after significant engagement by the previous Department for Culture, Media and Sport ministerial team prior to the election, and got them to the position we are in today, where there are major concerns across the sector about their impact and unintended consequences.

Before I highlight some of those concerns to the House today, and in the spirit of trying to be constructive in opposition, I urge the Government and the Minister, who I have a lot of time and respect for—I know she is covering today—to address a clear structural problem with how they are approaching this important policy area. As has been highlighted in some of the responses already, having the Minister for Gambling in the other place working part-time on major gambling reforms is clearly not working. While most Governments will face criticism at times for not listening, it is remarkable that in almost every conversation that the shadow DCMS team has with people across the sector, we are being told consistently that the Government are not even engaging, let alone listening. That major concern keeps coming up and is a constant theme. The Government have successfully, and remarkably, managed to unite the anti-gambling and pro-gambling sides of the sector, and everyone in between, in their concerns about the lack of engagement. Separate to the regulations we are discussing today, I ask the Minister to take that away and feed it back, perhaps through the Whips, because it is quite a feat.

Sadly, that failure to engage properly is why I believe there are a number of issues with the redrafted regulations in front of us today. First, in the broader economic context, Members might have seen the recent “Sunday Times Tax List 2025”, which highlighted what many of us already knew: the gambling industry already pays a lot of tax. In fact, the Office for Budget Responsibility estimates that in the year 2024-25, betting and gaming duties alone will raise £3.6 billion. That represents roughly 0.3% of all receipts, and is equivalent to £124 per household and 0.1% of national income. The Betting and Gaming Council estimates that its members contribute £6.8 billion to the economy each year, as well as supporting more than 109,000 jobs across the country. Although I understand that some might wish to bash the bookies, we must have a sensible debate about the collective impact of Labour’s tax rises on the sector, the thousands of jobs across the country now being put at risk and the potential unintended consequences for charities, sports such as British horseracing and the growth of the black market, as I have referenced already.

Betting revenues from horseracing are evidently falling because of flawed affordability checks, and the economic backdrop today is fundamentally bleaker because of Labour’s Budget, which adds to the broader sector concerns as the Government seek to squeeze even more money out of firms. We all must be clear that the levies being discussed will further push up costs for businesses and, when taken with Labour’s tax rises as a whole, will severely restrict or even remove the viability of smaller gambling operators and important community assets such as bingo halls and racecourses across the country.

That brings me to my next point: the scope of the amended draft regulations, which has been expanded from the previous proposals. There are deep sector concerns about who this Labour Government are targeting by expanding the scope of the regulations. For example, regulation 2 brings into scope trackside betting at greyhound and horseracing racecourses, while regulation 3 sets the minimum levy payment threshold, which had previously been agreed at £500,000 a year. However, the Government have gone much further, reducing the minimum threshold to only £10 for small operators, after which point they would need to start paying the mandatory levy and doing the administration that goes alongside that.

Unsurprisingly, the move has caused great alarm among independent and smaller firms, which are being brought into the scope of liability for levy payments for the first time. Independent bingo hall operators have also been brought into scope. Under regulation 4, these businesses will be charged at 0.2%, which I understand is double what had been proposed previously. If I am interpreting the proposed regulations correctly, they will see small independent bookmakers at courses around the country charged double the rate of pooled betting operators, such as the Tote. Can the Minister confirm whether my understanding is correct on that point?

The Government’s new proposals have also lumped independent high street bookmakers with a land-based retail rate of 0.5%, which is also up from the previous proposal of 0.4%. That means that small independent betting shops will pay an additional £1,000 a shop and an additional £500,000 in total. The Betting and Gaming Council has said that it is a real “hammer blow” to the 500 small independent bookmakers in the UK, which employ more than 2,500 people, undoubtedly leading to closures and job losses.

As if it is not bad enough that important community assets such as bingo halls and racecourses are facing a Labour battering, community lotteries are also expressing concerns about the risk of being charged the levy twice, because of how it has been drafted. That would negatively affect distributions to good causes.

I understand that the Department considered charging the levy at 0% for society lottery operators but concluded that that would amount to an exemption and would carry significant legal risks. Has a new impact assessment been carried out to analyse in greater detail the risks and concerns that are being expressed? Even if some Members are comfortable with bashing the bookies, they surely cannot be comfortable with the unintended consequences and risks resulting from less funding for good causes and a loss of jobs and community assets.

My final concern is about the potential impact on the charities and organisations that are already doing fantastic work to support those suffering with gambling addiction. As Members should already know, through the existing voluntary scheme, although it is far from perfect, hundreds of millions of pounds of contributions from gambling firms have been invested to help to fund a network of specialist charities and organisations that support those who need help. I understand that that network currently cares for roughly 85% of all problem gamblers receiving treatment in Britain, but there are major concerns and great uncertainty about how and to what extent that care can continue as the Government seek to change the system from voluntary to statutory.

First, on short-term funding, our understanding is that the regulations will lead to some firms paying a double levy this year. Ministers have been clear that they expect the industry to pay voluntary contributions this financial year, and that if these regulations come into effect, the industry will also be required to make payments on profits backdated to 1 April last year. The Minister must know that, faced with being charged twice in the same calendar year, many firms in the industry will look to minimise their voluntary payments for this financial year.

Moreover, according to regulation 4(6), the levy due this October for the first period is 33% higher than usual, so the Government not only are asking firms to pay twice in a year, but have added up front, in the fine print, an extra third on to the statutory levy. That clearly risks removing millions of pounds in vital funding from the treatment network before October when the first statutory levy payment is due. In the Minister’s response, can she tell us what risk assessment her Department has carried out on that potential drop in voluntary contributions and funding in the short term, and how many people she thinks will lose out on treatment in that time?

The new statutory levy also raises many questions and great uncertainty about how the money will be spent and the process behind the decision making, which has again been fuelled by a lack of engagement by the Government. The Minister might want to get a pen out—I can see she has one now. Who in Government will be setting the strategic direction and who is ultimately accountable for any issues arising with the levy? Is it Ministers in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the Department of Health and Social Care or the Treasury?

Can the Minister please confirm what target percentage will be spent on prevention, treatment and support services, and what percentage the Government expect to be spent on research? How will the Government ensure that research is not duplicated at the cost of treatment and prevention? How will services be commissioned and value for money ensured? If commissioning will primarily be led by the NHS, what support will be provided to charities to ensure that any future tendering processes do not risk their expertise being lost? Who decides who sits on any advisory boards for the levy and will the Government ensure that all views are being heard rather than just those of vested interests?

Will the Government ensure that charities funded by the voluntary levy are not frozen out by the more anti-gambling parts of the sector? Are the Government looking to expand residential treatment, currently provided by excellent charities such as Gordon Moody? The Minister’s Department has announced that the Gambling Commission will not have carte blanche for its approach, which will be a relief to many in the sector, but what does that mean in practice? How will the Government hold the commission to account?

Those are all serious concerns. I could go on, which highlights the scale of uncertainty hanging over the sector and, sadly, the lack of engagement and clarity from the new Labour Government to date. They are a loose horse with bad form and no jockey to give them strategic direction. On many of these issues, the Government are now asking us to take a leap into the dark with them—comparable with jumping Becher’s Brook blindfolded knowing it is odds on that there will be a very painful landing.

I am afraid that without some meaningful answers today, without evidence that a thorough and up-to-date impact assessment has been carried out on all these issues, and without changes to the draft regulations, we cannot support these policies. We know that they will do further damage to jobs and the industry, put community assets such as bingo halls and racecourses at risk of closure, and risk harming the very people and charities that the statutory levy is supposed to support.

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[Stephanie Peacock]

This has been a useful debate. The statutory levy has previously had cross-party support. I will respond to some of the shadow Minister’s questions, and then I will respond to the right hon. Member for Chingford and Woodford Green. In response to the shadow Minister’s opening point about the Minister for Gambling sitting in the other place, I think it was unkind to refer to her as working part time; she merely sits in the other place, and I gently remind him that the previous Government’s Foreign Secretary did the same. Perhaps we could put the political point scoring to one side.

[Mr French]

I was the Parliamentary Private Secretary to the former Foreign Secretary, so I understand what the Minister is trying to say. I am not questioning the motives of the Minister for Gambling; the point is that she is tied up, as we all know, on the Football Governance Bill, because the Government have decided to put the Bill through the other place first. Hence, she can only work part time on the gambling reforms. That is the feedback we are getting consistently, and that is the challenge I am trying to make.

[Stephanie Peacock]

I do not recognise the logic of that argument. I do not believe the hon. Gentleman served as a Minister. He perhaps does not know that a Minister has to juggle a number of pieces of legislation, and a number of different issues. The Baroness is committed to being the Minister for Gambling, and she engages with a range of the sector, and as indeed did I when I was the shadow Minister, and I continue to speak to the sector when appropriate.

As for the economic picture, I will take no lessons from the official Opposition, given the state they left the economy in. Now I want to move on to discuss the actual statutory instrument.

Oral Answers to Questions

Louie French Excerpts

Thursday 16th January 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

[Mr Louie French (Old Bexley and Sidcup) (Con)]

The previous Conservative Government invested over £400 million to support grassroots sport, recognising the vital contribution of sport to our communities across the country. The Minister will already be aware of our concerns about the impact of Labour’s national insurance hike, and the impact that the schools tax will have on community access to sporting facilities. Equally concerning is Labour’s decision to quietly cut the £57 million opening school facilities programme from March. Does she understand why grassroots sport organisations are so concerned about access to school facilities, and schools potentially having to close them to the community? Has she raised those concerns with Cabinet colleagues, and what measures are her Department taking to support access to grassroots sport for the more than 200,000 people who previously benefited from Conservative programmes?

[Stephanie Peacock]

I think that was six questions rather than one. I will take no lectures from the hon. Gentleman on the state of the economy and the inheritance that we received. The Government are a huge champion of grassroots sport, and will continue to be one.

Oral Answers to Questions

Louie French Excerpts

Thursday 28th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Let’s hope that the shadow Minister will not fall at the first hurdle.

[Mr Louie French (Old Bexley and Sidcup) (Con)]

Thank you, Mr Speaker.

The horseracing industry has been left in the dark by this Government, following the Chancellor’s disastrous Budget. The Office for Budget Responsibility warned that the national insurance rise would cost, on average, £800 per employee. With 20,000 employed across the country, the Government’s jobs tax could cost the horseracing industry £16 million and the gambling sector up to £100 million, even before the new levies. Will the Secretary of State tell the House whether her Department has made any assessment of the impact of the increase in national insurance contributions on the industry? How many jobs will be lost? How many training yards and courses will close? How many of the 500 independent bookies will shut?

[Lisa Nandy]

Let me gently say to the hon. Gentleman—who I welcome to his place—that he is well aware that in the decisions that we took in the recent Budget we protected the smallest businesses. More than half of businesses will pay either less or the same as they currently do. We will take no lectures from the Opposition about how to run the economy, after 14 years, given the mess that they left this country in. It really does take some brass neck to stand at that Dispatch Box and attack the Government.

Horseracing

Louie French Excerpts

Thursday 24th October 2024 Westminster Hall

[Mr Louie French (Old Bexley and Sidcup) (Con)]

It is always a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Edward. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for West Suffolk (Nick Timothy) for securing this debate. I congratulate him on being elected as one of the new co-chairs of the all-party parliamentary group on racing and bloodstock, alongside the hon. Member for Liverpool Walton (Dan Carden) who represents the fantastic Aintree racecourse, home of the grand national. For his information, my last winner was Silver Birch a long time ago; I cannot tell him who came second or third.

I look forward to working together to help to protect the future of British horseracing as a cultural and economic asset for the whole country. I know that is certainly the case in my hon. Friend’s constituency, home to the famous Newmarket racecourse and many world-class yards, having visited not too long ago. He is quickly becoming the Member of Parliament not only for West Suffolk but for horseracing—a title that many will be jealous of, including myself.

Putting aside the cultural and sporting importance of horseracing for a moment, the industry is of considerable economic benefit to the United Kingdom, as we have heard with respect to Ascot, Kempton Park, Ludlow, Aintree, Epsom, Wolverhampton, Newmarket, Fakenham, Newcastle, Doncaster, Newbury, Windsor and Cheltenham. I apologise if I missed any that were mentioned, but it shows the breadth of contributions from across our great country.

According to the British Horseracing Authority, the racing industry has direct revenues in excess of £1.47 billion and makes a total contribution to the UK economy of £4.1 billion. In fact, it was the second largest sport behind football for attendance, employment and revenues generated annually. More than 5.5 million people attended the more than 1,500 individual race meetings across England, Scotland and Wales in 2019. While attendance has not quite recovered from the pandemic, in 2022, almost 5 million people attended racing events across our great country.

In pure economic terms, the value of the industry is clear, but it contributes much more to life in Britain than just tax revenues. It is a core part of British culture that we have successfully exported around the world. On my travels in years gone by, I had the pleasure of witnessing at first hand some of the amazing horseracing courses in other parts of the world—I would add that I paid for that myself before I was a Member in this place.

Horseracing is synonymous with having a flutter, and the gambling industry is a key supporter of horseracing, providing a lifeline through racing’s income stream. Together, they are key to the non-financial benefits that I just mentioned. Research shows that 82% of betting shop customers visit their local shop at least once a week, and that 89% of those go on to visit other shops while on the high street. We have a clearer picture of loneliness in our society now than ever before, so we cannot take for granted the social contribution of horseracing, via high street betting shops and visits to the course.

Under the previous Conservative Government, we made the first major governmental contribution to the national conversation around loneliness and the importance of social connections. From my time working for a bookmaker when I was a student, I know that many people living in our communities rely on interactions with betting shop staff to keep them going. While the stakes gambled may not be high, I know many pensioners whose 10p lucky 15s are the highlight of their day—win or lose.

People who visit a betting shop or racecourse are helping to support the horseracing industry, with the horserace betting levy, sponsorship and media rights raising around £350 million for the sport overall. From the conversations that I have already had as the shadow Minister for Gambling, however, I know that there is an increasing tension in how the levy operates, which we have heard about already today.

I am sure that hon. Members present will already know that the horserace betting levy results in betting firms giving up 10% of their gross profits from horseracing back to the sport. That is on top of the 15% betting duty that the Betting and Gaming Council’s members pay to the Exchequer. Those members are expected to contribute a record £150 million in levy payments for 2023-24—the third consecutive year that the levy contributions have increased.

Despite the increased payments from betting to racing, betting turnover is down 17% in the first three quarters of this financial year. To further demonstrate the decline in racing, it is estimated that, in 2007, 17% of people enjoyed betting on horseracing, but that fell to 10% in 2018. As we have heard, that is causing great concern among not only racecourses but Betting and Gaming Council members. I have even heard reports of some operators already withdrawing offers such as paying extra places on races or offering best odds guaranteed, and some members have gone as far as not offering prices on horseracing meetings altogether. That is not sustainable or good for racing.

The previous Conservative Government were committed to the long-term success of horseracing in Britain. In line with the statutory requirement that we set out in 2017, we began the required review in April this year into the rate at which the levy is charged. Unfortunately, work on that has stopped dead in its tracks given the change in Government. Since the election, there has been a new appointment to the Horserace Betting Levy Board, with Anne Lambert appointed as interim chair, but otherwise the industry has been left in limbo by this new Government. On 29 July, Baroness Twycross, the new part-time Minister for Gambling, said in the other place:

“It is too soon for me to commit to the shape of future policy.” —[Official Report, House of Lords, 29 July 2024; Vol. 839, c. 801.]

Well, as we enter the national hunt season, the industry needs clarity and it needs it soon, as we have heard from other hon. Members today.

What support will the Minister and her Department be offering to the horseracing industry, financial or otherwise, and will she help to negotiate the new level at which the horserace betting levy is to be set? Will she bring forward some of the reforms set out in the gambling White Paper, which will help to level the playing field and promote growth in the sector? What conversations has she had with Government colleagues to make sure that the sport is not damaged by sky-high tax rises in the upcoming Budget? What measures is she taking with industry to stop the growth of the black market, and to make sure that punters can continue to have a flutter freely and safely? What support is she offering horseracing to help grassroots development, equine research and participation in the sport?

Horseracing is vital for many reasons: its economic contribution to the Exchequer, its social and sporting contribution, and the community it provides in mostly rural areas. From raising a foal to the final furlong, horseracing is an essential part of life for people and places up and down our country, as we have heard today. The industry is about not just sport, but, vitally, maintaining and promoting horse welfare across the country.

The BHA’s expenditure supports horse welfare; one of its goals is to drive high-quality care and support for the horse in racing. In total, the Horserace Betting Levy Board spends around £3.5 million annually on horse-related areas, such as educational research and a number of horse welfare projects. As we have heard already, the Jockey Club has also made changes over the years to ensure that the safety of horses is improved at our tracks. Moreover, the BHA is responsible for the safety of horses at races in Britain and works with animal welfare organisations, such as the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and World Horse Welfare, to keep racecourses as safe as possible for the horses. The cross-industry Horse Welfare Board also makes recommendations, including a multi-year strategy to improve welfare.

Earlier this year, alongside Great British Racing, the BHA launched a new campaign, HorsePWR, to promote the facts around welfare in horseracing and to challenge and correct inaccurate information in the public sphere. As the Horse Welfare Board’s first five-year strategy comes to a close in the new year, I hope to work with the BHA as it begins to prepare the next one. For anyone listening who has not had the opportunity to visit their local yard, I highly recommend going to their nearest stables to see the fantastic passion and work that goes on. I also recommend a trip to the National Stud, which is like visiting a five-star hotel—but visitors should make sure to take some Polo mints to keep the horses happy if they are allowed close to them.

From end to end, the equestrian economy is valued at nearly £8 billion, almost half of which is not the racing industry. Horseracing, as we have heard, is much more than just a sport; it is a true British pastime that has a permanent place in the hearts of many people across the country—me included—and it must continue to be supported by this Government as it was by the previous one. In closing, I urge the Government, after a slow start, to leave the stalls, gallop into action as if they were Kauto Star cruising up the Cheltenham hill, and give British horseracing the certainty and future it deserves to remain internationally competitive.

Sport: Team GB and ParalympicsGB

Louie French Excerpts

Thursday 10th October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Louie French (Old Bexley and Sidcup) (Con)]

It is my pleasure to open today’s debate on behalf of the official Opposition. I start by welcoming the new Secretary of State and Ministers to their place on the Front Bench. I look forward to what I am sure will be plenty of robust but fair debate in the weeks and months ahead. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Gosport (Dame Caroline Dinenage) on her unopposed return as the Chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee. I agree with the Secretary of State’s remarks a few weeks ago that the mark of any good Government is the ability to welcome challenge. I am sure that as the official Opposition, we will provide just that, alongside the Select Committee, in the spirit of healthy competition and in the national interest.

Own goals, knock-ons and false starts are sporting phrases that could easily describe the shambolic first 100 days of this Labour Government. Thankfully those words not do reflect the performances of our Olympic and Paralympic athletes in Paris, who did their country proud again this summer. While there was a reduction in the overall amount of British gold—not for the first time under a new Labour Government—the 327 athletes who made up Team GB at the Paris Olympics delivered a respectable seventh-place finish in the medal table, winning a total of 65 medals across 18 different sports.

We saw Ellie Aldridge become the first Olympic gold medallist in kite surfing. Kate Shortman and Izzy Thorpe won Team GB’s first ever Olympic medal in artistic swimming—not something I know too much about—while Toby Roberts became the first medallist for Team GB in sport climbing, winning gold in the boulder and lead combined. Who can forget the emotional scenes of watching Andy Murray’s last appearance on court after a fantastic career, the breathtaking drama of the athletics relays, GB rowers surging to victory near the finish line or, my personal favourite, which the Minister has already referenced, the sprint finish of Alex Yee, who reminded the world not to write off us south-east Londoners?

The same spirit was clearly demonstrated by our fantastic Paralympic athletes over the summer, with Great Britain finishing second in the medal table on 49 gold medals, making it the third consecutive second-place finish for Great Britain at the Paralympic games. That is an achievement I know the whole House and country will celebrate. With eight more gold medals won than in Tokyo three years ago, the ParalympicsGB team also equalled another record set then, winning medals across 18 of the 19 sports in which the team competed. That is still the highest number of any nation ever, and more than half of the 215 athletes in the team reached the podium.

While Labour MPs were busy shaking it off to Taylor Swift, Dame Sarah Storey was on her bike adding to her personal medal haul with a level of consistency and performance similar to that of England’s now all-time leading run scorer, Joe Root. Who can forget the incredible personal achievements of Paris swimmers Poppy Maskill and Alice Tai or wheelchair racer Sammi Kinghorn, who all left Paris with five medals each?

As any athlete or sport enthusiast knows, sport is nothing without the fans, coaches and thousands of volunteers across our great nation who help to support our grassroots clubs and top-class athletes to achieve their dreams and inspire the next generation. This summer was no different, with excellent coverage from the likes of the BBC and Channel 4 allowing an estimated 56 million viewers to witness another triumph of British sport and our athletes once again showcasing the best of British endeavour, character and competitive spirit. Britain

“invented the majority of the world’s great sports....19th century Britain was the cradle of a leisure revolution every bit as significant as the agricultural and industrial revolutions we launched in the century before.”

Those are the words of the former Prime Minister, Sir John Major, and they still ring true today. The Conservative party has maintained his commitment to our athletes, from the grassroots all the way to the elite athletes competing at the international level.

Before I move on to talk about the Conservatives’ proud record of supporting UK sport, I must highlight the crucial role of national lottery funding. The national lottery, established by a Conservative Government, has funded elite-level sport for more than three decades. In fact, from 2013 to 2017, the national lottery donated £337 million to the funding of UK Sport. According to that fantastic organisation, since national lottery funding began for the Olympics and Paralympics, British athletes have won a total of 863 medals. That funding has transformed British fortunes from finishing 36th in the Olympic medal table at Atlanta in 1996 with just one gold medal, to today, when we are undoubtedly an Olympic and Paralympic powerhouse.

More broadly, since its creation the national lottery has invested more than £49 billion into good causes across the country, with more than £14 million of that going into my constituency of Old Bexley and Sidcup. I am pleased that so many right hon. and hon. Members were able to meet some of those excellent organisations in Parliament just yesterday.

Over the last 14 years, the Conservative party, working alongside many fantastic sporting bodies, has backed our elite athletes. We have seen the Lionesses win a European championship and our men’s team reach a major final for the first time since 1966—we will not talk too much about the result. We also brought football home with the Euro 2020 final played at Wembley stadium. We have secured the competition’s return in 2028, when the UK and Ireland will host the European championships.

At the London Olympics, we all watched as our British athletes led the pack in swimming, cycling and so many other sports, alongside the fantastic Commonwealth Games in both 2014 and 2022, which have combined to inspire a new generation of athletes to greatness on our watch. Whereas Labour delivered the so-called austerity Olympics in 1948, we delivered the best Olympic games for a generation—I personally believe they were the best that the world has ever seen. Who can forget the incredible opening ceremony and the role played by Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II?

The Conservatives committed more than £9 billion so that, as a nation, we could ensure that the games were the most inspiring for our constituents that they could be, despite the financial challenges inherited from the Labour Government in 2010. The then Prime Minister Lord Cameron correctly believed that hosting the Olympics would secure a range of benefits over and above the intrinsic impact on sport, embracing trade, regeneration and national wellbeing. He was undoubtedly correct.

After we delivered the London 2012 Olympic Games for the nation and the world, we promised not to stop there. We committed to delivering an Olympics legacy that the country could be proud of for the decade following the games in five key areas.

[Mr Perkins]

The hon. Member is talking about the post-London Olympics legacy. One legacy is that the amount of physical education taught in in schools went down by 45,000 hours under his Government, and the gap between the number of state schools and independent schools doing team sports rocketed. Is the real legacy of his Government not that school sport was massively diminished, and should he not actually be apologising for their record in that regard?

[Mr French]

It was only a matter of time before those on the Labour Benches came out swinging. What I would say is that we could look at the record of the previous Labour Government, who sold off sports pitches, and have a much longer debate about whose legacy is worse.

The previous Conservative Government began to deliver on the Olympics promise right away. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s 2015 report, “A Living Legacy: 2010-15 Sport Policy and Investment”, confirmed that 1.6 million more people were playing sport once a week than when London won the Olympic bid under Labour in 2005. To build out that significant improvement, we backed our up-and-coming athletes with more than £1.35 billion for grassroots sport facilities across the country to ensure that they had the best facilities possible to achieve their potential. Funding from Conservative Governments has also seen over £320 million invested in grassroots sports across the country between 2021 to 2025 to build, renovate and maintain grass pitches and multi-sport facilities. That included up to 8,000 new and improved multi-sport grassroots facilities and pitches across the whole of the UK, helping the next generation to avoid the waterlogged and muddy pitches that I remember not so fondly from my experiences growing up playing football and rugby.

Between 2022 and 2024, £21.9 million was provided to renovate more than 3,000 tennis courts across Scotland, England and Wales. More than £60 million was provided by the last Government through the swimming pool support fund in 2023 and 2024 to support public swimming pool providers in England with immediate cost pressures and to provide investment to make facilities sustainable in the longer term. As most people will appreciate, swimming is not just a fantastic sport but a key life skill. Communities across the country have also benefited from the last Government’s community ownership fund, which helped save more than 330 pubs, sports clubs, arts venues and other precious community spaces. Also, we must not forget the £30 million Lionesses futures fund, which is helping to provide opportunities for the next generation of Lionesses. That £30 million is being used to build approximately 30 new state-of-the-art pitches and accompanying facilities. The sites will be designed to prioritise women and girls’ teams across England.

Importantly, the prominence of female athletes such as the Lionesses, Dame Kelly Holmes and Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill has helped to increase the number of women in England who participate in sport and physical activity. That legacy continues, with 550,000 more women participating than did eight years ago. Of course, there is more to do, but the steady improvement in participation shows that creating the legacy of the London games is a marathon, not a sprint.

It is not often that I will be positive about Arsenal, but the Prime Minister will be pleased that Arsenal women’s team is leading the way in women’s football; role models such as Leah Williamson are helping attendance at the Emirates to grow to record levels. The women’s team sold out the Emirates several times last season, and average attendance at their games was better than at 10 premier league clubs.

As we move on from the Paris games and turn towards Los Angeles in 2028, another round of great British athletes will inspire more of the next generation. While nothing will compare to the home games delivered by my right hon. Friend the Member for Godalming and Ash (Jeremy Hunt) and Boris Johnson as Mayor of London, the most recent games will surely be a springboard allowing a new generation of athletes to begin their ascendancy to the peak of world sport. The official Opposition will hold the Government’s feet to the fire to ensure that they support our athletes all the way from Sunday league to the premier league, so that they continue to perform at the pinnacle of world sport, as they have over the past 14 years. In doing so, we remember the crucial role that sport plays in our communities and for our health; I agree with the Minister’s comments on that.

I hope that today we will all finally learn more about Labour’s plans to fund support for great British sport, and to continue the strong Conservative legacy that the Government have inherited, because sport is about much more than just free tickets.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

I have a little tip for the shadow Minister for future speeches: my husband David and daughter Farah are Arsenal fans.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Louie French (Old Bexley and Sidcup) (Con)]

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. It is my pleasure to close the debate for His Majesty’s official Opposition.

“Inspire a Generation” was the motto of the London games delivered by the previous Conservative Government. Throughout the debate, we have heard from Members on both sides of the House about the inspirational stories from each and every constituency represented here today. We heard from the hon. Member for Reading Central (Matt Rodda) about the important role that the armed forces play, particularly in disability sports, and about the challenge faced by his local football club, Reading FC.

The Liberal Democrat spokesperson, the hon. Member for Cheltenham (Max Wilkinson), who is not here right now, spoke about the physical and mental health challenges and benefits of sport—and about his haircut’s likeness to Alan Shearer’s, which was interesting. We heard a fantastic maiden speech from the hon. Member for Warrington South (Sarah Hall). I hope that she has successfully secured significant brownie points for mentioning her husband and father-in-law. As a former rugby league player, I know her local club, Warrington Wolves, very well—I do not think I had many victories there during my youth.

We also heard from my hon. Friend the Member for Droitwich and Evesham (Nigel Huddleston), who was a fantastic Sports Minister. I pay tribute to him for his dedication and efforts in that post, and for supporting the shadow team in our new roles. We heard from the hon. Member for Chesterfield (Mr Perkins), who spoke about his passion for tennis, about the APPG for tennis, and about the fantastic park tennis project, which I am pleased has, alongside Bexley council, improved three courts in my constituency.

We heard the maiden speech of the hon. Member for Mid Dorset and North Poole (Vikki Slade), who I hope has better balance on those paddle boards than I do. We also heard the maiden speech of the hon. Member for West Bromwich (Sarah Coombes), who mentioned her local football club, the Baggies. As a London MP, I could make lots of comments about her former boss, Sadiq Khan, but given the context of the debate, I think I will move on swiftly.

We had a maiden speech from the hon. Member for North Cornwall (Ben Maguire). I hate to break it to him, but I also prefer the jam first in my cream tea; I also enjoy a Cornish pasty, as Members can probably tell. We also had a maiden speech from the hon. Member for Mid Cheshire (Andrew Cooper), who highlighted the fantastic career of Paula Radcliffe and other local athletes and para-athletes, including his mum. As always, we heard a fantastic speech from my friend the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon). In his passionate speech, he particularly highlighted a gymnast from his community whose sporting achievements, including that gold medal performance in Paris, have inspired people in Northern Ireland. Like the hon. Member, I do not think I would last too long on a pommel horse.

We had a maiden speech from the new hon. Member for Mansfield (Steve Yemm), who spoke with great passion about his new seat. I am sure the former Member for Mansfield will appreciate his kind words today: Ben is not only a great colleague, but a fantastic goalkeeper for our annual football match against the Lobby team. We also had a maiden speech from the hon. Member for Redditch (Chris Bloore)—I apologise if I have missed anyone, but there were quite a lot of maiden speeches today. We heard about Redditch’s links to Led Zeppelin and Harry Styles and the hon. Member’s love of local roundabouts. I cannot see him in the Chamber, but I have a bad joke here: I was going to say that those roundabouts are perhaps a good background for his Government’s upcoming U-turns. [Hon. Members: “Oh!”] Sorry.

We had a maiden speech from the hon. Member for Worsley and Eccles (Michael Wheeler). We heard about his love of Eccles cakes and a cheeky Vimto, and the Speaker came up. I can tell the hon. Member that having your own mum as a constituent is an experience I know only too well—he should make sure that he listens to his mum. We had a maiden speech from the hon. Member for Corby and East Northamptonshire (Lee Barron), who referenced a constituent who was a BMX silver medallist. We also heard a fantastic maiden speech from the new hon. Member for East Kilbride and Strathaven (Joani Reid), who mentioned the Caledonia Gladiators basketball team and the rich local sporting heritage that she enjoys in her constituency, and heard other fantastic maiden speeches from the new hon. Members for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Danny Beales) and for Bournemouth East (Tom Hayes). I think I have covered everyone; if I have not, I apologise. It has been a well-themed debate across the House, and we have rightly celebrated the performances of our athletes and para-athletes.

To return to my actual speech, the Paris Olympic games saw 327 fantastic British athletes compete—almost as many as there are new Members in this place—and 65 medals won, with a deeply proud nation watching along. There can be no doubt that the London 2012 Olympic legacy is alive and well and continues to inspire the future of British sport. The legacy that we have heard about today was made possible by record levels of investment, particularly from the national lottery and the Conservative Governments over this period, investment that was made in the face of the Olympic-sized hole in the budget left by the Labour party in 2010. We have always been committed to our athletes and clubs, from the grassroots to the Olympics, and we remain committed; that was especially the case during the pandemic, when our Government invested an unparalleled £1.6 billion of emergency funding through the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, supporting well over 200,000 jobs and 5,000 organisations. Even in some of the most difficult economic circumstances, the Conservative party has always backed our athletes with the funding they need to compete at the highest level.

That is why I, and the sporting industry more broadly, remain disappointed that Government Ministers have yet to confirm the future funding for sport in our country. Since the election, we have seen an Olympic games open and close, we have seen a Paralympic games open and close, and we have seen the Government lose a chief of staff in fewer than 100 days—perhaps not an Olympic record, but almost certainly a British one. Our constituents and the athletes we have been celebrating today deserve an answer from the Government about their future: not next week, not in a month’s time, but today. As Ministers will know, British athletes need to know whether they are going to be funded during the next Olympic cycle leading up to the Los Angeles games in 2028, and to what extent. They need to know what equipment they can afford and when they can afford it.

Equally importantly, our world-leading coaches need to know whether the funding will be there to enable them to continue training British athletes over the next four years. Otherwise, we risk competitor nations luring them away to emulate our world Olympic and Paralympic preparations—nations around the world are already beginning to copy our model of athlete development. Our football clubs need clarity on when Labour will bring forward the football governance Bill, while horseracing and the gambling industry are still in the dark over Labour’s plans. Labour Members repeat their confected line about the state of the economy almost as often as they draw breath, but this Government are creating a black hole of uncertainty at the heart of British sport. We urge them to hold the line, bite down on their gum- shields, and ensure that our athletes and UK Sport have the support they need and the certainty they deserve.