How has the holding the Euro 2020 Final and other Euro matches at Wembley Stadium supported London’s economic recovery?

Firstly, I want to pay tribute to the incredible England team, their inspirational manager and all their support team for giving us an amazing tournament that we will remember for a long time. They really did us all proud both on and off the pitch. I also want to thank the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the FA, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), Brent Council, the MPS, TfL, GLA staff and many others who have worked tirelessly over the course of the championship and for many months beforehand to put on this amazing event. Millions of people from all around the world watched the eight games at Wembley, once again proving that London is truly the best sporting city on the planet.

I know it seems like a long time ago that our sports stadiums were full of fans and we were welcoming supporters from across the world to our sporting events, but there is no doubt that major sporting events can act as a real catalyst not only for economic recovery and to boost tourism, but also to support grassroots sport participation amongst all Londoners, improving community cohesion and social integration. While we have not been able to welcome large numbers of international fans, Euro 2020 has still been a fantastic success for the city with fans from across the country traveling to Wembley, helping London’s economy to recover.

It is not just football that has this kind of impact. In 2019 the Major League Baseball [World] Series came to London and sold out two games between the Yankees and the Boston Red Sox, creating a boost of almost £37 million to London’s economy and a further £9.5 million to the national economy. In 2017, the World Athletics Championship reached 1 billion people and contributed £107 million to the national economy. Latest research published by London & Partners shows that major sporting events like Euro 2020 and other cultural events contribute over £600 million on average to the capital’s economy every year. This is great for London, particularly as we recover from the pandemic. I will continue to do all I can to harness the incredible power of sport for our city.

Thank you. I would like to thank the Mayor and also other fellow Members of the London Assembly for following my local team during the whole tournament. I also congratulate the agencies involved and Gareth Southgate [OBE] and the England players, in particular a fellow boy from Brent, Raheem Sterling, for giving us such positive memories.

The aftermath of the tournament was more painful than the penalty defeat itself. I was disgusted to see the actions of some ruining the final for others in Wembley, and also those hurling racist abuse online to our players. You have already spoken at length about policing at Wembley today, but how will you work with the MPS, and indeed social media companies, to tackle hate online?

Firstly, I must record, Chair, my jealousy at seeing the Member with his England kit on the pitch for the photograph I saw. It was good to see Members of the Assembly seeking advantage from really good events taking place in their patches, but I am jealous of the opportunity that you had.

We are working with the social media companies in relation to the responsibility they have in relation to not allowing racist messages on their platforms, some of which were criminal offences, but also amplifying these messages of hate. It is really important for us to remember what a social media platform does: it allows a racist to have their message seen by many more people. That has an impact in relation to the demoralising effect it has and the distressing effect has on BAME people in particular. Also, it can encourage and give succour to others to also be racist. I have written to the big social media companies asking a number of questions in relation to what they have done and what they intend to do. I was really pleased to see the Prime Minister was also calling them out in relation to the responsibility they have.

The final thing I would say is this. There is an Online Harms Bill in Parliament. It is really important that parliamentarians use the opportunity of the Bill to make sure we close any loopholes, particularly if it is the case that social media companies are not taking the action they need to be taking.

Thank you. I am conscious of time and so I will move on.