Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he will take to maintain levels of women’s participation in exercise during further covid-19 lockdowns.

I am keen that we continue to maintain the focus on women’s sport and build on the fantastic progress made in recent years. We recognise that Covid-19 has brought new challenges to the way people are able to engage in physical activity. We welcome initiatives like Sport England’s This Girl Can campaign which has inspired 3.9 million women to take part since its launch in 2015 and their “Join the Movement” campaign which is encouraging everyone to stay active during the lockdown.

We are determined to get more women and girls active. That is why in June I met with sports bodies and Women in Sport to ask about their plans for promoting women’s sport including increasing women and girls participation. I’m happy to say there was a real shared commitment amongst sports to protect investment in women’s sport and promote its growth. The new local restriction tier arrangements coming into force from 2 December in England should also mean that there will be greater options for how people can be physically active, from going to the gym to using sports facilities, to taking part in organised sport.