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

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to encourage the hosting of major sporting tournaments in the UK.

The Government recognises the wide-ranging benefits that hosting major sports events can bring.

My Department works closely with UK Sport and the national governing bodies of sport, as well as local, regional and devolved partners, to ensure that the UK successfully bids for and stages a wide range of the world’s biggest sporting events.

The 'Gold Framework' publication sets out the processes as to how the Government and UK Sport work together with our sports bodies in bidding and staging major sports events. Our approach has been successful, with over 100 major international sporting events secured for the UK since the London 2012 Games.

We have a strong programme of events to look forward to, including the Cricket World Cup, Netball World Cup and Cycling Road World Championships this year, the EURO 2020 men's Championships next year, and the EURO women's Championships and Rugby League World Cup in 2021.

We are also looking forward to hosting the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, welcoming thousands of athletes and officials from around the world and showcasing the best that the UK has to offer to a global audience of 1.5 billion.