Government Intervention

[Svlad Cjelli]

At long last, the Government might be getting serious about the state of the game - this is at a much higher level than all previous such investigations, etc.

Culture, Media and Sport Committee

Select Committee Announcement

07 DECEMBER 2010

For Immediate Release:

committee announces new inquiry

The Culture, Media and Sport Committee issues a call for evidence on Football Governance

The Culture, Media and Sport Committee is today launching a new inquiry into the governance of professional football clubs responding not only to the high-profile coverage of Liverpool and Manchester United, but also to broader concerns that current and future generations of football supporters of clubs across the country are ill-served by current football club regulations. The coalition agreement includes an undertaking to encourage the reform of football governance rules to support the co-operative ownership of football clubs by supporters, and our inquiry will consider the case for strategic Government intervention in the administration of professional football clubs. In so doing it will look at the scope for enhancing supporter involvement in decision-making processes and consider whether current regulatory processes – including fit and proper persons tests – are adequate. Questions the Committee will consider, include:

· Should football clubs in the UK be treated differently from other commercial organisations?
· Are football governance rules in England and Wales, and the governing bodies which set and apply them, fit for purpose?
· Is there too much debt in the professional game?
· What are the pros and cons of the Supporter Trust share-holding model?
· Is Government intervention justified and, if so, what form should it take?
· Are there lessons to be learned from football governance models across the UK and abroad, and from governance models in other sports?

Committee Chair Mr John Whittingdale said:

“The Government has said that it will encourage the reform of football governance rules to support the co-operative ownership of football clubs by supporters, and there is widespread concern that the current governance arrangements are not fit-for-purpose. Our inquiry will look at the case for strategic Government intervention and improved self-regulation and will consider models which involve supporters more in how clubs are run. We are keen to hear from a wide range of interested parties, including fans, as well as the clubs themselves and their own regulatory bodies.”

[Victor Meldrew]

So is this a committee or a quango?
It surely can't be a quango as The Tories vowed to scrap most of them as part of their election campaign spiel but who would believe a Tory?

[Row Z Royal]

So is this a committee or a quango?
It surely can't be a quango as The Tories vowed to scrap most of them as part of their election campaign spiel but who would believe a Tory?

FAIL

Do you know what a QUANGO is?

[Victor Meldrew]

So is this a committee or a quango?
It surely can't be a quango as The Tories vowed to scrap most of them as part of their election campaign spiel but who would believe a Tory?

FAIL

Do you know what a QUANGO is?

Tell me and the world wise one.

[papereyes]

So is this a committee or a quango?
It surely can't be a quango as The Tories vowed to scrap most of them as part of their election campaign spiel but who would believe a Tory?

MASSIVE FUCKING FAIL
do you even have a clue?

[papereyes]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture,_M ... _Committee

[prostak]

So how far can this intervention go before FIFA start issuing sanctions? Won't it be limited to offering suggestions? I remember the Polish government trying to clean up football corruption by getting rid of half the FA, only to rapidly backtrack once they were threatened with a ban from competitions.

[Svlad Cjelli]

This is a Select Committee - that's the highest level of investigation in the HoC. To quote

These departmental committees have a minimum of 11 members, who decide upon the line of enquiry and then gather written and oral evidence. Findings are reported to the Commons, printed, and published on the Parliament website. The government then usually has 60 days to reply to the committee's recommendations.

I can't underestimate just how significant a development this is - it's very hard for a government to ignore the recommendations of a Select Committee.

As I hinted at a few weeks ago, certain politicians have lost patience with the game's ability to govern itself responsibly, so now the WC is out of the way they can get involved themselves.

As a very minimum I would expect the recommendations of Burns to be forced onto the FA so they will be much better and some of the structural failings currently there to be forcibly removed.

[Svlad Cjelli]

So how far can this intervention go before FIFA start issuing sanctions? Won't it be limited to offering suggestions? I remember the Polish government trying to clean up football corruption by getting rid of half the FA, only to rapidly backtrack once they were threatened with a ban from competitions.

Can't see it being an issue, tbf.

[sandman]

Isn't it funny (not funny ha ha) how Platini just happened to vote for Qatar in the 2022 vote while the French government is negotiating a €1bn-plus investment by Qatar into the French nuclear fuel programme.

[roadrunner]

So is this a committee or a quango?
It surely can't be a quango as The Tories vowed to scrap most of them as part of their election campaign spiel but who would believe a Tory?

FAIL

Do you know what a QUANGO is?

Tell me and the world wise one.

It's a fruit..

[Victor Meldrew]

So is this a committee or a quango?
It surely can't be a quango as The Tories vowed to scrap most of them as part of their election campaign spiel but who would believe a Tory?

MASSIVE FUCKING FAIL
do you even have a clue?

I asked the question m8,I didn't give the answer so no need for the language Tory boy.
Very demeaning for one involved in our education system,aren't you?
And there was you moaning the other day about some students and their attiude and behaviour.
Pot,kettle.

[Row Z Royal]

The short answer is that a QUANGO isn't a committee.

[Victor Meldrew]

The short answer is that a QUANGO isn't a committee.

As I understand it having served on a number of committees a committee reports back to members the result of deliberations.
As I understand it Quango members act as a committee and reports back in most cases to State bodies but not necessarily only to State bodies.
So anyway is this government also going to reconsider taking funding away from the Sport for all (can't remember the exact title) idea where sport is more encouraged at State schools?

[John Madejski's Wallet]

The short answer is that a QUANGO isn't a committee.

As I understand it having served on a number of committees a committee reports back to members the result of deliberations.
As I understand it Quango members act as a committee and reports back in most cases to State bodies but not necessarily only to State bodies.
So anyway is this government also going to reconsider taking funding away from the Sport for all (can't remember the exact title) idea where sport is more encouraged at State schools?

The Health Protection Agency is technically a Quango, as is the Environment Agency.
Neither of these act as committee's that give recommendations. They are large entities in their own right, but as "arms length bodies" they are fairly autonomous and not under direct government control. From the work they do they do advice government strategy, but that ain't the same thing.

The Health Protection Agency was one the main high-profile Quango that the press reported was to be dissolved.......... is it f*ck, they're just dissolving the official ALB status and bringing all the work, institutes & staff under direct Dept of Health control. The HPA, by the way, is TWICE the size of DoH!!!

[Bandini]

As I understand it

With respect, that doesn't seem to be the soundest base for a post on this subject.

Interesting report, Dirk.

[Ian Royal]

QUANGO does not equal bad. There are a lot that do extremely important work... they aren't necessarily set up in and functioning in the best way they could be. But Quangos are very important. Especially given the dirty Tory oxf*rd privatised everything.



*Says a man who works for a Quango.*

[papereyes]

So is this a committee or a quango?
It surely can't be a quango as The Tories vowed to scrap most of them as part of their election campaign spiel but who would believe a Tory?

MASSIVE FUCKING FAIL
do you even have a clue?

I asked the question m8,I didn't give the answer so no need for the language Tory boy.
Very demeaning for one involved in our education system,aren't you?
And there was you moaning the other day about some students and their attiude and behaviour.
Pot,kettle.

Perhaps do a teensy bit of reading before wading in with the first post?

Which is, incidentally, what I tell my students.

[Skyline]

So is this a committee or a quango?
It surely can't be a quango as The Tories vowed to scrap most of them as part of their election campaign spiel but who would believe a Tory?

MASSIVE FUCKING FAIL
do you even have a clue?

I asked the question m8,I didn't give the answer so no need for the language Tory boy.

TBF, the tone of your post made it seem like you just couldn't wait to have a dig at the Conservatives, whether it was relevant or not. I'm not surprised papes reacted as he did.

[Mr Angry]

So is this a committee or a quango?
It surely can't be a quango as The Tories vowed to scrap most of them as part of their election campaign spiel but who would believe a Tory?

Its a Parliamentary Select Committee and not a Quango. (A Quango - as the N & G in Quango suggests - is non-Governmental, whilst the O in Quango suggests - it's an organisation; this is a Parliamentary committee).

Do you agree that what the Coalition Government has done in instigating this is right, or wrong Victor?

I ask as pretty well EVERY football fan knows that there is something fundamentally flawed with how football is organised in England (and to a lesser extent, the other coun tries of the UK) where owners of teams like Portsmouth can basically break the law and get away with it, and where the "fit and proper" test for owners was simply did they have a cheque book, and frankly, its about time that someone did the right thing and at least had a look at it.