Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to their announcement on 22 October of a £100 million package of support for public leisure services, whether this fund can be used to support leisure centres which are operated by parish and town councils.

We fully recognise that the facilities that will be supported by this package of Covid-19 support funding will play a vital role in maintaining the health and wellbeing of the nation, and the contribution they play in building community cohesion and participation in sport. This is in addition to the existing Sales, Fees and Charges scheme established by the Government which supports leisure centres run directly by local councils and which will be extended into the first three months of 2021-22.

My colleagues in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport are engaging with the sector to fully understand the challenges faced and are designing their £100 million leisure services scheme accordingly.