Anna Firth
Main Page: Anna Firth (Conservative - Southend West)(1 year, 9 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate
Stuart Andrew
The hon. Lady raises an important point. While this is not about a foreign policy, we will ensure, first, that we know who the owners actually are—I have had examples of some clubs that have no idea who actually owns the club—and, secondly, that that person will have to go through a vigorous fit and proper person test, so we can examine the points that I think all the fans want examined. Fans want to know that owners have the best interests of their clubs at heart, just as they do.
Anna Firth (Southend West) (Con)
Southend United football club is the heartbeat of our local community, but that heart is currently on life support. Will the Minister pay tribute to the Shrimpers Trust, the ShrimperZone and The Blue Voice for all they have done to keep Southend United going? They will warmly welcome this White Paper and having a greater say in the running of their club, but will the Minister confirm that the strengthened owners and directors test in the White Paper should mean that Southend United’s current situation will never be repeated?
Stuart Andrew
I congratulate my hon. Friend and pay tribute to her for the enormous amount of work she is doing on behalf of her constituents and the fans at Southend. She has been relentless in pursuing me on this issue and I am sure the fans will be extremely grateful to her for that. She is absolutely right: the independent regulator will be monitoring the situation in each club at a much earlier stage so that there can be intervention, if necessary, before we get to the crisis point, to put those clubs on a stable footing so that they can be there not only for the people who enjoy them today, but for their children and grandchildren.