§ Mr. HoyleTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps he has taken to establish that the bidding process for the 2006 World Cup will be free from bribery. [68459]
§ Mr. Banks[holding answer 1 February 1999]: The Government expect bids to bring international events to this country to be pursued with openness and integrity. I take a close interest in ensuring this is so, and following controversy about Olympic bids have received assurances from the Football Association that the bid for the 2006 World Cup naturally will comply fully with the published guidelines, and will certainly be free from recourse to bribery. I accept those assurances and will continue vigorously to assist with the FA campaign for the 2006 bid, whose strength and viability rest on its quality against bidding criteria.