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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he plans to take to work with the Premier League to (a) identify breaches of covid-19 lockdown rules by football players and (b) ensure that prosecutions are pursued against those players for any such breaches of those lockdown rules as permitted under the Coronavirus Act 2020.

The Secretary of State and I met with The Football Association, Premier League and English Football League earlier this year to discuss the importance of adherence to the strict COVID protocols they introduced last season.

In that meeting, the Secretary of State and I made the football authorities fully aware of their responsibility to ensure that players and staff act in accordance with government rules and guidance. The football authorities reiterated this important message to their clubs and players, highlighting the significance of both matchday and non-matchday COVID protocols.

Any person, no matter their profession, found guilty of breaching the law should be prosecuted accordingly.