Rugby League

Mr Speaker, I take this opportunity to pay tribute to the work that rugby league clubs do across the country and to my own team, Wigan Warriors, who absolutely smashed Warrington Wolves in Las Vegas last month.

Are you still in the cup, by the way? [Laughter.]

No comment. Rugby league clubs are at the heart of many communities, including my hon. Friend’s in Rochdale. I was delighted that, in the last financial year, Sport England awarded over £30,000 to his constituency to support grassroots rugby league.

Rochdale Hornets have had a winning start to their league season—a spicy performance no doubt linked to our new partnership with Nando’s restaurants. Mr Speaker, if you get a Rochdale Hornets season ticket, you can get 20% off in Rochdale Nando’s. Ours is a true community club with the work off the pitch as important as the results on it. Does the Secretary of State agree that we should be promoting rugby league as not just great entertainment, but a brilliant way to help our nation’s mental and physical health?

I could not agree more. Rugby league clubs have the ability to reach where others cannot. This week, I was delighted to convene a roundtable with the Prime Minister to discuss the issues raised by the TV series “Adolescence”, and in particular the impact of mental health and isolation on young men. We are working with rugby league clubs to see what more we can do to support young men’s mental health in coalfield communities. I will be in a position to announce more to the House shortly.

The Secretary of State and the hon. Member for Rochdale (Paul Waugh) are both right to praise the important work that rugby league and indeed rugby union clubs do in their communities. What steps is the Secretary of State taking to better balance that with the Public Accounts Committee’s cross-party criticism of how her Department is managing its covid loan book?

This Labour Government will always protect value for taxpayers’ money, and we are determined to grip the issues that we inherited. We have already recovered 97% of the repayments scheduled to the Department and we will respond shortly to the serious issues raised about the handling of covid loans in the Public Accounts Committee’s report. I will then be in a position to update the House.

I am going to call the shadow Minister, but I am not sure whether he should declare an interest as a former apprentice of London Broncos.

Thank you, Mr Speaker; I am happy to declare it. We lost a lot of games back then. The return of the ashes is welcome news for rugby league, but while the next generation will be inspired by the series, the Labour Government have dropped the ball. Encouraging grassroots participation is key to the future of all sports and community clubs across the country, but Labour has cut the £57 million opening school facilities fund, £21 million of investment in multi-sports grassroots facilities, and ended the £25 million Lionesses futures fund that invested in facilities to support women and girls’ sport. Arguably, the biggest owngoal for grassroots sport is the removal of planning protections for sports pitches across England. Why is it only the Conservatives who will protect grassroots clubs and the sports pitches that Labour wants to concrete over?

The Conservatives cannot have it both ways. On the one hand, they want to see economic growth but, on the other hand, they are not prepared to take the necessary steps in order to achieve it. The truth is that the Government take grassroots sport incredibly seriously. I am really proud that Sport England is able to provide financial support to clubs across the country through the £160 million movement fund with support of up to £15,000 for grassroots sport organisations. I have to say to the shadow Minister that it takes some brass neck to stand at the Dispatch Box and lecture this Government in the light of the mess that his Government left to us.