16/03/06 - Cllr Tomlinson Urges Government To Fufill Schools Sporting Funding Promise

Six years ago Prime Minister Tony Blair announced that £750 million of lottery money would be spent on boosting sport in Schools.

Shamefully £450 million of that money remains unused today.

Sports Minister Richard Caborn set out his view that Britain should send no more 'Eddie the Eagles' to Olympic Games, a vivid way of saying that money should only be spent where it had a chance of delivering medals.  It is craven policy and if pusued it would mean wonderful sports like gymnastics will become marginalised.  They would face a catch 22 situation - lack of previous success means no money, but without funding what chance do gymnastics and similar sports have of improving?

All this takes us to the nitty-gritty of this Government's appallingly hypocritical attitude to sport.  It talks a good game but it will not put money where its mouth is.

Caborn's idiocy provoked Seb Coe, here of the 2012 London Olympics winning bid, to say that those Games should not be judged purely by the number of medals won but also by their effect on the next generation of youngsters,

"I made a commitment to get kids into sport on the back of these Olympics," said Coe.

So did Tony Blair's Labour Government.

But bitter experience reveals we cannot trust a word they say about sport - as that £450 million sitting idle for six long years so devastatingly proves.

Cllr Justin Tomlinson, Lead Member Leisure, Culture & Recreation, "We should be doing all we can to keep youngesters involved in sport, regardless of whether they are to be the next Gold medalist, we need them out in the fresh air, enjoying being active.  Everything must be done to release this lottery money.  Whilst it is sat idle, our children may also be faced with being idle - this is unacceptable."