§ Mr. Nigel JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much of the English Sports Council's promised annual funding for youth development has been disbursed to lower league football clubs. [57159]
§ Mr. BanksThe English Sports Council has made available £20 million over the next four years from the Lottery Sports Fund for the establishment of new academies or centres of excellence for Football League clubs. This money is to be matched pound for pound by the FA Premier League. The English Sports Council take the final decision on applications from this source. The Council has recently allocated £5.8 million over the next four years to 22 Football League Clubs—the first allocation under this initiative. The Premier League will be allocating a similar sum.