Jo Stevens MP: "We know lower-league clubs survive on ticket revenue, we've got to get fans back in the stadiums and the grounds. Without an effective system in place we were moving towards this, it was going to happen."
Friday 25 September 2020 13:48, UK
The Shadow Culture Secretary Jo Stevens has criticised the government's handling of their decision to postpone the phased re-introduction of fans to stadia from October 1.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced on Tuesday that the phased return of fans to watch live sport, which was earmarked to start on October 1, could be on hold for six months due to fears over the growing rate of coronavirus infections.
DCMS (Digital, Culture, Media and Sport) Secretary Oliver Dowden has also stated that the Premier League will be expected to provide some financial relief to football clubs in the EFL, with the economic impact of a continued lack of matchday revenue predicted to become more severe for lower-league sides.
Jo Stevens MP has told Sky Sports News that a lack of an effective 'test-trace-isolate' system has meant that supporters could not return to watch their clubs in person. Had that system been in place, she believes clubs would have been able to function and earn much-needed matchday revenue.
She said: "The situation is because the government has failed to have an effective test-trace-isolate system in place.
"We are months and months on, if we had an effective system in place where people could be tested, traced and isolated if you got symptoms, clubs would be able to function.
"We know lower-league clubs survive on ticket revenue, we've got to get fans back in the stadiums and the grounds.
"Without an effective system in place we were moving towards this, it was going to happen.
"Public health has to come first, but a big part of making sport come back [is that it can be] for everybody, what we want to see is an effective test-trace-isolate system."
Stevens also feels the government has not prioritised sectors that are struggling financially during the pandemic.
She feels lower-league football clubs come into that category and instead of being prioritised for support, there has been a "one size fits all" approach.
The MP for Cardiff Central was also scathing of the government's communications strategy during the crisis, and insists that it has substantially hit sports clubs.
She added: "A lack of effective clear communication has bedevilled the government communications throughout the pandemic and I'm afraid football is one of the casualties of that.
"I think if we all understood what the government's plan was, where we want to get to and how we get there then we would be able to understand the decisions along the way much more clearly.
"But it seems to me the government has either ignored what's coming or they've known what's coming and decided not to say anything. We are months on and there's no plan.
"Clubs have done everything they can, they're businesses locally, we know clubs are at the heart of local communities, everybody has tried to do their best but we need a clear plan."
The Shadow Secretary also urged sport to reform many outdated governance practices given the impact the effects of the crisis are having. She believes an overhaul of football's Fit and Proper Persons Test, Owners and Directors Test and the role of fans within clubs must be overhauled.
