North Swindon MP Re-Elected Co-Chair Of Influential APPG Sport At Meeting With Minister

North Swindon MP has been re-elected as Co-Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Sport at an AGM in Parliament, addressed by the Sports Minister.

The APPG holds regular meetings in Westminster to discuss issues affecting sport at every level – from grassroots clubs to elite competition. With the Sport and Recreation Alliance providing Secretariat support, it allows the Group’s members to draw on the knowledge and experiences of over 320 national representative bodies of sport and recreation. Justin will continue Chair the APPG alongside Paralympic champion, Tanni Grey-Thompson.

Justin is renowned for his love of sport, especially football where he is an avid fan of Swindon Supermarine whom he watches every week both home and away. His other favourite sport is cricket. In the last Parliament Justin was responsible for protecting the school sports budget as he initially rebelled against the Government in order to demonstrate the important of regular sports in schools.

In this parliamentary session, Justin hopes to promote the power of sport in creating a healthy society, as well as the potential that sport has to unlock opportunity across the entire country. In particular he is keen to see increased participation among young people funded through the money raised from the Soft Drinks Industry Levy, as well as more people being able to take advantage of sports and leisure facilities on school sites between 4pm & 6pm for free.

The Group’s AGM included a discussion about the best ways to boost participation in sport, as well discussing concerns about proposed changes to the way capital funding will be provided to schools in order to deliver healthy outcomes for pupils.

During the meeting, Sports Minister Tracey Crouch provided an update on the Government’s Sport Strategy which was launched a year ago. While there has been progress in increasing participation in, and attendance at, sporting events, the Minister was keen to highlight that there is more work to do, and that she will be working closely with the APPG to ensure that we build an active nation. She also confirmed that the money raised from the Soft Drinks Industry Levy will go towards doubling the School Sport Pupil Premium (something Justin and the APPG lobbied for prior to the General Election).

Justin Tomlinson MP said: “It is a huge honour to have be re-elected of the APPG for Sport. Ensuring that people lead a healthy, active lifestyle is something I am passionate about and led on these issues in Parliament since I was first elected. We’re lucky that in Swindon we have fantastic community sports groups & successful programmes like the Draycott Sports Camps, and these are making a huge difference. However there is more to do, and I will be working hard with Ministers and national sports governing bodies to help deliver a healthy and active nation”.