What steps he has taken to secure future international sporting events for Scotland.

I have recently secured the full support of the United Kingdom Government for Glasgow and Scotland's bid to host the 2014 Commonwealth games. The bid will be formally submitted tomorrow. Scotland's strategy for attracting, organising and delivering major events is the responsibility of Scottish Ministers.

I, too, support the Glasgow bid for the Commonwealth games. Looking forward another four years, the Conservatives have been urging a joint England-Scotland bid to host the World cup. There are many merits in a joint bid—the excellent stadiums and the fantastic fans in Scotland—yet the main obstacle continues to be the Chancellor of the exchequer. I would have thought that in the current climate the Secretary of State and the Chancellor would be looking at means to strengthen the Union. The SNP is opposed to a joint bid for the World cup—

Order.

I am not aware that the Scottish Football Association is giving that matter serious consideration at present. It is principally a responsibility for the SFA and the football authorities, so although I hear what the hon. Gentleman has said, I do not want to prejudice the continuation of the four home nations competing in international competitions.

I congratulate my right hon. Friend on his efforts to bring the 2014 Commonwealth games to the city of Glasgow. Does he agree that the UEFA football cup final to be played in Glasgow this month will be an excellent showcase for the city, which should lead to many more football finals being played in that football-mad city, and that it will also be a major boost to the Commonwealth games bid that is being launched tomorrow?

I am certainly happy to identify myself with the comments made by my hon. Friend. It is right to recognise the centrality of football to the city of Glasgow. Only on Saturday, it was a great privilege for me, as Secretary of State for Scotland, to accompany His Eminence the Cardinal of Scotland and the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland to Ibrox to see Rangers play Celtic in what I hope was an eloquent testimony to their shared determination to challenge sectarianism, which for too long has blighted football in that great city.

In supporting Glasgow's bid for the Commonwealth games, may I remind the Secretary of State that in the north-east of Scotland we have a crowd of very talented swimmers, including European record holders, who will hopefully participate in both the Commonwealth and the Olympic games? Will he support the bid to ensure that we have an Olympic swimming pool in the north of Scotland so that those swimmers get the training facilities on the ground that they deserve to help them win medals for both Scotland and Britain?

If the right hon. Gentleman writes to me about his specific proposal, I will certainly ensure that his points are passed on to those who would make a decision on an Olympic-size swimming pool.

At a time when the Glasgow bid for the 2014 Commonwealth games is on its way to London, will my right hon. Friend make sure, as well as supporting the bid, that the 2012 Olympic games have the knock-on effect of ensuring that facilities in Scotland are second to none and that we are given the platform that we need for 2014?

I remain convinced that there are huge opportunities for Glasgow, not simply in terms of the Commonwealth games bid, which I sincerely hope will be successful, but in its being another part of the United Kingdom to benefit from the 2012 Olympics. One of the key attributes of London's successful bid for the Olympics was a recognition not just of the magnificent diversity within that global city, but of the fact there were real opportunities for a legacy for every part of the United Kingdom. I know that that is certainly the intention of the Olympic authorities.