Sports Council (Hansard, 1 July 1988)

§ Mr. Moynihan

In recent years, the Sports Council has played an important role in encouraging the extensive increase in opportunities for people to participate in sport. In Great Britain, overall levels of participation have risen from 17 million in 1977 to 23 million in 1986 and are continuing to rise. A wider variety of sports are being played, and in some areas we have seen higher levels of performance and achievement. Sports men and women have ever rising expectations of the facilities they need, as well as more exacting requirements for specialist support at the highest levels of achievement.

These trends suggest that, in common with the roles of the governing bodies, the role of the Sports Council is vital to the future of sports at all levels. To fulfil that role, the Sports Council needs to he able to respond quickly and flexibly to changing demands and expectations.

In my open letter of 19 November to the Chairman of the Sports Council, I asked whether there is a case for a smaller membership of the council. I have now considered the responses to that question and the further comments which I have received from the Central Council of Physical Recreation. Many respondents took the view that the Sports Council in its present form is too large and unwieldy. I share that view and intend, therefore, to reduce the membership of the Sports Council to less than half its present size. This will bring the size of the Council into line with that of the other non-departmental public bodies sponsored by my Department.

To bring about this change, I have today written to those members of the council whose appointments expire today to tell them that they are not to be reappointed. I have also written to a number of others, inviting them to resign with effect from 31 July. I have it in mind to make a number of new appointments on that date.

In the course of my review of sports policies, I will be considering a number of issues during the rest of this year. In particular, I want to examine how we might place greater emphasis on the work of the regional councils for sport and recreation in the context of developing the role of the new Sports Council.

I am certain that the Sports Council will wish to develop new consultative arrangements, involving the chairman of the regional councils for sport, the governing bodies of sport, local authorities, sportsmen and women, and others. The form of that consultation will be a matter for the new council to consider.

This is the first in a series of important initiatives setting the scene for the structure and direction of sports policy for the 1990s.