Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the number of clubs in the Vanarama National League and National League North and South which are unable to fulfill their fixtures; and whether he has had discussions with the National League on supporting those clubs.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Government has already facilitated a unique promotional deal with the National Lottery who provided a £10 million cash injection to the Vanarama National League and National League North and South in October 2020. Further support is available to clubs in these three divisions through the Sports Winter Survival Package: this will allow them to both survive and finish their seasons if they choose to do so. Sport England, as administrators of the Sport Winter Survival Package, are working with any club that wishes to access support through the scheme. I discussed the support package with the National League on 29 January 2021.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to put in place additional support for indoor tennis centres; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Government has provided unprecedented support to businesses through tax reliefs, cash grants and employee wage support, which many sport clubs have benefited from. On 22 October 2020, the Government also announced a £100m support fund for local authority leisure centres. We have no plans to provide additional bespoke support for indoor tennis centres.
In addition, Sport England’s Community Emergency Fund has provided £220 million directly to support community sport clubs and exercise centres through this pandemic. On 26 January Sport England also published their strategy ‘Uniting the Movement’ and as part of this have committed an extra £50million to help grassroots sports clubs and organisations affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
We are continuing to work with organisations to understand what they need and how we may be able to support them.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what support he plans to provide for (a) community amateur sports clubs and (b) venues which are not eligible for the covid-19 lockdown grants announced in January 2021 on the basis that they do not pay business rates or have a rateable value.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Sports and physical activity providers and facilities are at the heart of our communities, and play a crucial role in supporting adults and children to be active.
Government has provided unprecedented support to businesses through tax reliefs, cash grants and employee wage support, which many sport clubs have benefited from. The £300m Sports Winter Survival Package also aims to protect the immediate futures of major spectator sports in England over the winter period. On 22 October 2020, the Government also announced a £100m support fund for local authority leisure centres.
In addition, Sport England’s Community Emergency Fund has provided £220 million directly to support community sport clubs and exercise centres through this pandemic. On 26 January Sport England also published their strategy ‘Uniting the Movement’ and as part of this have committed an extra £50million to help grassroots sports clubs and organisations affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
We are continuing to work with organisations to understand what they need and how we may be able to support them.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of the grant his Department provided to the Football Association to distribute to National League clubs was intended to replace gate receipts lost as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
As part of a promotional deal with the Football Association, the National Lottery provided £10m in funding for the 66 clubs in the National League. This initiative is in addition to the ongoing support the National Lottery provides to good causes through the National Lottery Distribution Fund. Funding has been allocated to clubs by the National League using an approach based broadly on past attendance. The National League will keep allocations under review and may amend them if any club suffers acute financial hardship.
The department does not hold records on the average attendance or gate receipts of National League clubs.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what criteria his Department used to determine the amount of money given to the Football Association to be distributed to clubs in the National League; and on what basis the National League will distribute that money.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
As part of a promotional deal with the Football Association, the National Lottery provided £10m in funding for the 66 clubs in the National League. This initiative is in addition to the ongoing support the National Lottery provides to good causes through the National Lottery Distribution Fund. Funding has been allocated to clubs by the National League using an approach based broadly on past attendance. The National League will keep allocations under review and may amend them if any club suffers acute financial hardship.
The department does not hold records on the average attendance or gate receipts of National League clubs.
Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what the (a) average attendance and (b) annual gate receipts of each club in the (i) National League, (ii) National League North and (iii) National League South was in the (A) 2018-19 and (B) 2019-20 season; and how much the Government's monthly grant in October 2020 was for each of those clubs.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
As part of a promotional deal with the Football Association, the National Lottery provided £10m in funding for the 66 clubs in the National League. This initiative is in addition to the ongoing support the National Lottery provides to good causes through the National Lottery Distribution Fund. Funding has been allocated to clubs by the National League using an approach based broadly on past attendance. The National League will keep allocations under review and may amend them if any club suffers acute financial hardship.
The department does not hold records on the average attendance or gate receipts of National League clubs.