§ Mr. Nicholas BennettTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement, following the recent consultation exercise, on the proposals to bring competition to the management of local authority sport and leisure facilities.
§ Mr. GristMy right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for the Environment, for Wales and for Scotland 371W have considered very carefully the wide-ranging responses to consultation. They have decided that the competitive tendering regime provided for in part I of the Local Government Act 1988 should be applied to the management of sport and leisure facilities. We will therefore lay an order under section 2(3) of the Act to make the management of sport and leisure facilities a defined activity for the purpose of the Act. Before laying the order we shall undertake the consultation as provided for by section 2(4) of the Act.
My hon. Friend the Minister with responsibility for sport has provided a very detailed explanation of the proposals for implementation in his statement earlier today. In Wales, competition will be implemented in five stages over a two-year period beginning 1 February 1992. the two-year period acknowledges the low threshold of private sector capacity in this field in Wales at present. The local authority groupings used in the main implementation programme for services defined by the Act will also apply to sport and leisure facilities.
I have arranged for copies of a schedule giving full details of implementation by date and local authority grouping to be placed in the Library of the House.