Rugby World Cup 2015
Debate between Chris Bryant and Tania Mathias(8 years, 7 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Dr Mathias
I absolutely concur with my hon. Friend. I have been to Milton Keynes on occasion. If it is anything like Twickenham, it will be looking even better as a result of the rugby celebration. All the host cities have already got the bug, which is brilliant.
We have a legacy in Twickenham that I do not believe my hon. Friend has in Milton Keynes, because we have had a Herculean transport project. I commend England Rugby 2015 for what they have been doing. Some residents have already said that their access permits have made the situation even better than it is on an average match day. I know that for every single match the project will be managing the traffic and making things as easy as possible for residents.
Of course, the best, most positive legacy will be if England wins the world cup.
Dr Mathias
I am half Welsh, I must confess.
We will have a great legacy. I have to say that the England team is looking exceptionally good. Having watched them in August in the friendly with France and seen Anthony Watson score those two tries, there is a chance that England could win the world cup. However, as the Minister is well aware, there are no guarantees in competitive sport. That is why we enjoy sport at this level.
Dr Mathias
I absolutely agree. I feel for my hon. Friend in not having any matches. Yesterday we had the Webb Ellis cup touring, and that invigorated people. I can assure him that we were thinking of him, with that trophy named in honour of his area.
For the legacy, we have to go beyond the stadium. The Rugby Football Union in Twickenham is an amazing sports business with annual revenues of over £150 million. It is doing great things in England for rugby, especially for schools and clubhouses up and down the country, and for training. Importantly for Twickenham, it has introduced rugby to some of our schools; I wish it was to all of them. It has given free tickets to some matches to residents who live nearby and are affected by the matches taking place. The RFU also has Home Turf, which is funding street festivals in Twickenham. Very commendably, it donates to charities such as the Dallaglio Foundation, which uses rugby to give young people other skills—life skills—showing that rugby goes beyond the stadium. The RFU is also very energy-conscious. That is important in my constituency, where many people are highly environmentally aware.
The RFU has a very good museum that holds exhibitions that are pertinent to locals. I was very proud that their exhibition of world war one heroes who were also rugby players had my grandfather’s medals—his Royal Flying Corps medals and his Military Cross—because he was a world war one hero and also a great rugby player.
We in Twickenham, and the RFU in particular, do look to the stadium. However, my concern, and the reason for this debate, is that some people in Twickenham consider the stadium to be more like a giant UFO that just happens to there. Some residents do not have on repeat on their smartphones iconic tries such as the one by Sir Gareth Edwards in the Barbarians-All Blacks game in 1973. Some residents do not think of those in the line-out statue as giants but more as extraterrestrials who just happen to be there. We have to look out for residents who are not completely in love with the game—we have to go beyond the sport.
This House has already debated the legacy of the Olympics, which led to many people taking up more sports.
Dr Mathias
I will come on to that. I hope that people in Twickenham and in England generally will take up rugby. In my area, pre-school children are learning the ball skills of rugby through Rugbytots, which is independent and not run by the RFU.