HC Deb 11 July 1994 vol 246 cc648-9
2. Mr. Barry Field

To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will list the clubs and facilities on the Isle of Wight which have received grants from the Sports Council since 1987.

Mr. Sproat

The Sports Council has awarded grants and loans totalling £260,557 to 23 clubs, facilities and organisations on the Isle of Wight since 1987–88. I will arrange for a list of recipients to be placed in the Official Report.

Mr. Field

Does my hon. Friend agree that the Isle of Wight, the first unitary authority in England, provides an ideal opportunity to enhance all the sporting facilities throughout the island for the benefit of young and old alike? Will he take this opportunity to join me in congratulating the Foundation for Sport and the Arts on its extraordinary generosity to sports clubs on the island and to sportsmen and sportswomen?

Mr. Sproat

Yes, I join my hon. Friend in congratulating the Foundation for Sport and the Arts, which has given more than £500,000 to the island. That is extremely welcome. I also agree with my hon. Friend's other remarks.

Mr. Barnes

Future grants for the Isle of Wight will come from the new Sports Council. On Friday, the Minister said that the six independent members of that council would be appointed by the Government, but would be independent of them. How will he work that trick?

Mr. Sproat

It is not a trick; it is a simple, straightforward matter. The independent members of the council will be independent of the Government in any tactical decisions that they may make. They will also, and importantly, be independent of other vested sports interests which legitimately put their views—for instance, the Central Council of Physical Recreation and the British Olympic Association. That is the sense of the term "independent" in that context.

The following is the information:

Sports Council grants and loans awarded to clubs, facilities and organisations on the Isle of Wight for financial years 1987–88 to 1994–95
Organisation Capital £ Revenue £
1987–88
Isle of Wight Cricket Association 1,000
East Cowes Victoria Athletic Club 5,000
Body Tech 200
Isle of Wight Sports Centre 355
Isle of Wight Cricket Association 2,500
1988–89
Isle of Wight Sport and Recreation Council 199
Isle of Wight Youth and Community Service 100
1989–90
Nil
1990–91
West Wight Swimming Pool Trust Ltd. 110,000
Medina borough council 18,000
Isle of Wight Sports Council 3,000
Organisation Capital £ Revenue £
1991–92
Cowes Sports Football Club 110,000
Freshwater Bay Golf Club 14,000
Medina borough council 2,167
Hampshire and Isle of Wight LTA 1,700
1992–93
Isle of Wight county council 1,686
Hampshire and Isle of Wight LTA 5,500
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Football Association 4,150
1993–94
Isle of Wight county council 6,000
Isle of Wight County Cricket Association 3,000
1994–95
Ryde Sports Club 100,000
Isle of Wight Table Tennis Centre 75,000
Isle of Wight county council 5,000
Isle of Wight County Cricket Association 2,000
£
Capital total = 205,000
Revenue total = 55,557
Grand total = 260,557
1Loan.
Forward to