Last week the House of Commons returned to Westminster, and whilst there was considerable attention to the airport queuing style system that has been created to facilitate voting whilst observing social distancing, we also saw the end of the video conferencing used to allow members to participate in debates from home. Before the Whitsun recess […]
Article by Jeremy Wilson for The Daily Telegraph - published 4 June 2020 Clubs down the football pyramid fear that the Government has "moved on" and let the Premier League "off the hook" despite Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden's suggestion that Project Restart was dependent on sharing the financial rewards through "the entire football family". Telegraph Sport revealed on Wednesday the sense of despair not just through the […]
Article by Luke Andrews for MailOnline - published 5 June 2020 The wreck of a German battleship that sank off the coast of Kent in 1878, when she was rammed by a friendly vessel trying to avoid two fishing boats, has been added to the National Heritage List for England. SMS Grosser Kurfurst's armour plating […]
Over the last two months we have seen an unprecedented and world-leading business support package delivered by the government, designed to keep firms going during the lockdown and to preserve jobs. Over £30 billion of finance has been provided through the different business loan and support schemes. Many local firms, large and small have used […]
Article by Jack Bezants for MailOnline - published 28 May 2020 A group have MPs have called for urgent talks with the Football Association and the English Football League to address the financial impact of coronavirus on sport. There are intensifying fears that a number of professional clubs are facing administration due to the outbreak of the […]
Article by Louise Taylor for The Guardian - published 28 May 2020 The chances of League One teams resuming the season seem increasingly doubtful with clubs bitterly divided and a final decision on whether to continue or curtail the campaign unlikely before Monday week at the earliest. With assorted proposals being put forward, the absence […]
The Government has announced this week further measures to ease the lockdown restrictions. These important steps can be made because of the collective action we have taken to restrict the spread of the virus. This has saved lives and enabled the NHS to cope with the demands placed on it by COVID-19. We have not […]
Article by Geraint Hughes for Sky Sports News - published 22 May 2020 Up to 10 football clubs could go into administration within weeks unless they receive an urgent and substantial government bailout, it has been claimed. Damian Collins, the former chair of the digital, culture, media and sport select committee, said many League 1 […]
Article by Mark Jones for the Daily Mirror - published 22 May 2020 Up to 10 EFL clubs face administration imminently without a government bailout, according to MP Damian Collins. Mr Collins - the former chair of the digital, culture, media and sport select committee - is calling on Boris Johnson to step in and help clubs […]
By Damian Collins MP and Charlie Methven, co-owner of Sunderland AFC We may only have a few weeks to save professional football in this country as we know it. The shock of the COVID-19 crisis has badly exposed the weak financial position of clubs in the English Football League (EFL), many of whom were already […]