Oral Answers to Questions — Culture, Media and Sport – in the House of Commons at 2:30 pm on 25 June 2007.
David Taylor
Labour, North West Leicestershire
2:30,
25 June 2007
What recent discussions she has had with the football authorities on governance.
Richard Caborn
Minister of State (Sport), Department for Culture, Media & Sport
I have met representatives of the Football Association to discuss governance of football on a number of occasions, most recently on
David Taylor
Labour, North West Leicestershire
The Stevens inquiry into corruption has shrunk to investigating just 17 transfer deals while wide concerns about the vulnerability of clubs to takeover by international moguls and politicians remain unaddressed. Do Manchester City supporters, for instance, have any protections against the attentions of the unsavoury Thaksin Shinawatra, or is it for ever the fate of football fans to be fleeced by flaky foreign financiers?
Richard Caborn
Minister of State (Sport), Department for Culture, Media & Sport
My hon. Friend's question reflects a little feeling, which I understand. Let us make no mistake: commercialisation and foreign investment have helped the premier league; it is the best in the world, and is watched by just under 1.5 billion people around the world every weekend; it is a great product. My hon. Friend is adding his voice to the concern expressed, with some reason, because we must make sure that the premier league does not turn into a billionaire's playground. The grass-roots communities from which those clubs came must be respected. I hope that it is not just lip service that is paid to the fans' organisations, to which he refers, but that clubs consider their views when making decisions.
Richard Caborn
Minister of State (Sport), Department for Culture, Media & Sport
I am meeting the Football Association, the Football League and the premier league later this week to discuss ownership and some concerns, which the right hon. Gentleman rightly raises. There is a meeting in the Treasury tomorrow with a number of my hon. Friends and Treasury officials to consider share ownership and how certain actions have been taken. I do not want to comment on any individual action or club, but I do want to respond by saying that many share his concern and we are giving that issue serious consideration.
Jim Devine
Labour, Livingston
Will my right hon. Friend join me in condemning football clubs that are charging above-inflation increases for tickets? Only last week, Heart of Midlothian announced a 50 per cent. increase in ticket prices for some of its games. Does he agree that that reinforces the need to have supporters trusts and representatives of football fans on the boards of football clubs?
Richard Caborn
Minister of State (Sport), Department for Culture, Media & Sport
Again, I have a lot of sympathy with the question. Football trusts are developing up and down the land. However, it is important that club owners take ticket pricing into consideration. Because of the fairly hefty increase in television fees, in particular in the premier Division, I have appealed to football clubs in England to consider their fans by at least freezing, if not reducing, some ticket prices. Some clubs have done that, especially in the north-west.
Bob Russell
Opposition Whip (Commons), Shadow Minister (Defence)
Surely the Sports Minister does not believe that football is squeaky clean. With football having proved itself incapable of looking after its interests fairly, is it not time that we had a royal commission on professional football?
Richard Caborn
Minister of State (Sport), Department for Culture, Media & Sport
I do not think so. Let us keep things in proportion. As I said, we are running the most professional league in the world. There are 40,000 football clubs in England. It is by far the largest participation sport. It is governed by the Football Association, which has brought new governance into play. The conduct of clubs is being scrutinised more closely than ever. In July, the European Union will produce a white paper on sport, which will address some of the issues at a European level, where they have to be considered if action is to be taken to curtail some of those excesses that have emerged in the game.
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Andrew MacKay
Senior Parliamentary & Political Advisor To David Cameron