Select committee: Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee
Recommendation 8
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DCMS sectors: First Report
Published 23 Jul 2020
Paragraph 33
Addressed to Department for Culture, Media and Sport
Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee Impact of Covid-19 on DCMS sectors All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
Football must also become more representative. The fact that no Premier League club and virtually no English Football League club has a black owner, Chair or chief executive, is a fundamental inequality at the heart of the game. We do not believe that the voluntary initiative proposed by the FA will motivate clubs to act with sufficient speed. Instead, we recommend that DCMS revises the Code for Sport Governance, adding targets for BAME representation on boards. We also wish to record our dismay at the slow progress in kicking out homophobia from football. It is crucial that everyone involved in the game is clear about the remaining barriers to players coming out. The Covid-19 crisis is an opportunity to improve a number of areas within football, and to this end we will continue to pursue opportunities in this Parliament to introduce legislation outlawing homophobic chanting at matches.
From: Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DCMS sectors: First Report (HC 291), paragraph 33, 23 July 2020
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 14 October 2020 (deadline 23 September 2020).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government's response sets out support already provided across DCMS sectors, agrees with the recommendation for a national domestic tourism campaign, and on several other recommendations says it is considering options, working with the sector, or would need further evidence.
- On tax reliefs for theatre and music, the government says it "keeps all tax reliefs under review" and that HM Treasury "would need to assess" any new relief for effectiveness, cost to the Exchequer, wider economic impacts and ability to stand up to abuse.
- On extending the furlough scheme for the creative industries, it states that "there will be no further extensions or changes to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme", which closes at the end of October, and points to a new Job Support Scheme from 1 November.
- On museum insolvency, the government says it is "looking at legislative, and non-legislative, options" to prevent the dispersal of collections.
- On a 'Creators Council', it says it "would need a clear steer from the sector" and "robust evidence" of a gap in what the existing Creative Industries Council delivers, if the sector wishes it to consider the proposal.