Football Governance Bill [HL]

Lord Taylor of Warwick Excerpts

2nd reading
Wednesday 13th November 2024 Lords Chamber

[Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-Afl)]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for her opening statement and for giving Peers, including me, the opportunity to discuss the Bill with her last week.

I am originally from Birmingham, which is renowned for its two leading teams, Aston Villa and Aston Villa reserves.

[Noble Lords]

Oh!

[Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-Afl)]

I see that your Lordships agree.

I declare an interest as one of the founding members, in 2002, of the Independent Football Commission, I have been a patron of the Aston Villa Supporters’ Trust, and I was honoured to play on a number of occasions for the England parliamentary football team and indeed the Sky Sports Aston Villa All Stars team, which plays for various charities.

I support the key aims of the Bill, especially strengthening fan engagement, enhancing financial stability, protecting club heritage assets and stopping breakaway competitions. The issue is whether it will work. I am sceptical, which is why the Government should perhaps consider a sunset clause so that, at some time in the future—maybe in three to five years—the success of the regulator can be assessed.

The financial regulation model that has been chosen is based on the banking world. The Bill introduces a new concept of “backstop powers” to intervene in the distribution of TV revenue, but these are untested powers and could cause uncertainty. Banking is about finance, but football is about finance and romance. I do not hear much about an account holder’s undying love for a bank, but there are fans who will support their football club through thin and thin, through relegation after relegation. That is why I have so much sympathy for Villa’s main rivals, Birmingham City.

I note that women’s football is not currently covered by the Bill. However, I trust that the Government will keep to their promise to take forward the recommendations set out in Karen Carney’s review of women’s football, Raising the Bar. We must not forget that the first senior England team to win a major cup since 1966 was the England women’s team.

I am not in favour of EDI overreach. That is the last thing that I want to see, but we have to accept that prejudice still exists. If it did not, we would not need EDI. I welcome the commitment in the Bill to do more to improve equality, diversity and inclusion within the game. Among the 92 clubs in the top four tiers of English football, there are currently just two black managers. Noble Lords might say, “So what?”, but I do not think that is a good reflection on our multiracial nation. It should be about the colour of the shirt, not the colour of the skin. Furthermore, fewer than 2% of football governing bodies or club boards are black or ethnic minority. Again, I do not think that is acceptable.

The Premier League has many black stars—indeed, 43% of the total number of players. The new regulator’s role has been described as that of a referee. The noble Lord, Lord Hayward, spoke about being a referee, yet football referees are still woefully lacking in racial or gender diversity. Currently, there is only one black Premier League referee, 15 years after the first one.

After my father stopped playing professional cricket for Warwickshire, he became a qualified referee for the Birmingham County FA. I still remember as a small boy in the 1960s being with my father when he turned up to referee his first match in Sheldon Park. There were no dressing rooms, so he got out of his Ford Cortina in his black referee outfit, clutching his whistle. The 22 white players were waiting for the referee, not knowing who had been allocated. I will never forget the stunned look on their faces when they saw this black man coming towards them to be the referee. He said, “I want no nonsense. Get on with the game. I’m blowing my whistle”. During that match, there was not one swear word and none of his decisions was challenged. In fact, in the following months, the local FA would even get requests from club officials for “the black referee” to be appointed to their games. So, if this was possible in the 1960s, why does it remain so difficult more than 60 years later, when the conduct of top referees is in question this very week? I am hoping that the new regulator will at least look at this aspect of the game.

I asked the Minister when we met last week about cost. The cost of the regulator is unclear, and this is quite important because, if litigation results in relation to problems that this new regime might enhance, Manchester City has unlimited revenues.

Perhaps the Minister can confirm that the powers of the new regulator will not in any way conflict with or override the existing regulatory powers of the Premier League, Football Association, UEFA or FIFA. It is reported that, in September this year, UEFA contacted the Government, expressing some concerns that the new regulator would be in breach of UEFA’s rule that there should be no government interference in football.

Hopefully, the new regulator will solve the stand-off between the Premier League and the EFL concerning finance. However, we must not forget that the origin of football was not really about money. About half of the Premier Division clubs were started in the Victorian age by churches—including Villa, Everton, Man City and Southampton. Their remit was not money: it was to keep young men in particular out of pubs and into parks, keeping them physically and mentally fit. Since then, football has become the nation’s most watched and played sport. The Premier League is regarded as the best in the world. Football’s soft power brings nations together. Yes, I accept that it is now so big that this £8 billion industry cannot be left to regulate itself, but regulation must not become so tight that it creates stagnation.