HC Deb 19 December 1988 vol 144 cc42-3W
Mr. Speller

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how overseas visitors will obtain entry to football grounds when a membership entry card is essential for entry.

Mr. Moynihan

This issue is discussed in the report of my working party on the national membership scheme, published on 9 November. The report recommends that clubs should be able to make temporary membership arrangements for overseas visitors to a Football League match and that such visitors should be required to produce proof of identity to gain entry to an international match. These are matters that will be considered further when our legislative proposals are published.

Mr. Menzies Campbell

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what provision there will be under the football national membership scheme for football fans who do not support any one team in particular;

(2) what measures he intends to take, under the football national membership scheme, to prevent (a) the use of stolen cards (b) the borrowing of cards and (c) applications for cards in bogus names;

(3) if he has made any estimate as to the proportion of those who attend football matches occasionally who will register under the national membership scheme;

(4) when he expects to bring forward legislation for a national football membership scheme;

(5) whether he intends to bring forward legislation which gives him the power to require that non-football sporting events should be open only to spectators who are members of a national membership scheme;

(6) whether the forthcoming Bill for a football national membership scheme will allow for the extension of the scheme to Scotland and Northern Ireland without further legislation;

(7) what provision he intends to make in the Bill for a football national membership scheme, for Football Association cup ties between league and non league sides;

(8) what redress there will be for those refused access to a football match due to incorrect information held by the football membership authority;

(9) to what extent the football membership authority will rely, in avoiding multiple membership applications and applications in false names, on cross reference of information with (a) the police computer, (b) local authorities' poll tax registers, (c) the Inland Revenue, (d) the Department of Social Security and (e) data bases held by private organisations;

(10) whether those committing football related offences would lose their membership of the football national membership scheme, on committing an offence, on being charged, or on conviction.

Mr. Moynihan

The Government's proposals for legislation to establish a national membership scheme for football supporters will be published shortly. It will be for the body appointed to run the scheme to consider the way in which the scheme will work in detail and submit proposals to the Secretary of State for approval. The report of the working party which I chaired made recommendations on a number of the points raised by the hon. and learned Gentleman. It also recommended that the principles of the Data Protection Act 1984 should be applied to the scheme.

Mr. John Marshall

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) what information he has, in the light of his intention to introduce a national identity card scheme for football clubs, on the net indebtedness of division IV Football Association clubs;

(2) what information he has in the light of his intention to introduce a national identity card scheme for football clubs, on the net indebtedness of division III Football Association clubs;

(3) what information he has, in the light of his intention to introduce a national identity card scheme for football clubs, on the losses and profits of the clubs in division III of the Football Association during each of the last three seasons;

(4) what information he has, in the light of his intention to introduce a national identity card scheme for football clubs, of the profits and losses of the clubs in division IV of the Football Association in each of the last three seasons.

Mr. Moynihan

[holding answer 6 December 1988]: My Department does not receive the financial accounts of Football League clubs. It might be possible to provide the information requested by my hon. Friend from the information held at Companies House, but only at disproportionate cost.