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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the selling of shares in cricket clubs competing in The Hundred on the level of Government support that will be provided to grassroots cricket teams.

We want a thriving sector, with robust National Governing Bodies (NGBs) that can use their nationwide remit to deliver sport to people across the country. Sustainable investment is important for achieving this. The Hundred will see additional investment into grassroots cricket from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), which is welcomed.

The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through Sport England, which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding. Sport England’s work focuses on increasing participation in sport, including cricket, at grassroots level to give more and better opportunities to all.

Sport England provides long term investment to the England and Wales Cricket Board, the National Governing Body for cricket, which receives up to £11.6 million for five years to invest in community cricket initiatives. This is a separate consideration to the Hundred sale.