Statement on the National Lottery—Future Distribution Arrangements

The Minister for Culture, Welsh Language and Sport (Alun Pugh): I spent half an hour on Saturday morning hitting a tennis ball around. This pleasant ministerial duty was in celebration of the opening of the Jones Alexander Barr Tennis Centre in Eirias Park, in north Wales. I do not know whether the next Wimbledon champion will emerge from Colwyn Bay, but I know that £387,000 of Sportlot funding was an essential part of a funding package that has permitted a wonderful new facility to be built in north Wales. We can all point to projects in our constituencies where lottery funding makes a real difference to people’s lives. My personal favourite is the national cycle network, which provides sustainable transport and means fitter, and therefore healthier, citizens. It is also a great deal of fun.


Since it began a decade ago, the lottery has invested over £600 million in projects throughout Wales. Lottery projects, large and small, enrich all of our communities. Overall, the lottery has been a success. It pre-dated devolution and it was therefore opportune that a UK-wide review of lottery funding coincided with the award of the second lottery licence last year. I welcome the Department of Culture, Media and Sport’s White Paper, which contains many proposals for improving lottery distribution arrangements. I am pleased to confirm that lottery funding for the arts, heritage and sport will continue for the foreseeable future. A new distributor will take on the functions of the New Opportunities Fund and of the community fund that will control 50 per cent of the lottery money intended for good causes. It will be a fund for transformation, and will provide grants for smaller projects as well as big capital projects.


Many prospective projects will be able to meet the criteria for more than one funder. There is no reason why a fine building in a Valleys community—perhaps a redundant chapel or miners’ institute—should not be transformed into a community venue for sports and active recreation. It could even be a non-traditional venue for performing arts, which could benefit from the £2 million for the arts outside Cardiff that I outlined in my statement two weeks ago. Such a project could qualify for heritage, sports, and arts funding. Joining up lottery funding to add value to future Government projects protects the key principle of additionality, but reflects people’s desire for lottery funding to make a real difference in their communities.


Three key issues will guide my response to the proposals. First, the Assembly and the Assembly Government need to have more influence in setting strategies and priorities for lottery funding. The White Paper acknowledges and states that we should have more influence, which I welcome. There is a clear commitment to recognising the distinctiveness of the UK’s constituent nations, and the new distributor in Wales will reflect this.


Secondly, one of my concerns about lottery funding is that the most deprived communities in Wales have not always received their fair share of lottery funds and projects. That is despite positive action by distributors, through initiatives such as fair share, which is targeted at some of the most deprived communities. People on low incomes often contribute a disproportionate share of their income to the lottery pot. There is a good case to suggest that these communities should receive a disproportionate benefit from funding therefore. Otherwise, critics of the lottery could suggest that it is a regressive, albeit voluntary, tax. As a Labour Minister, I strongly believe in the principle of progressive taxation. I will ensure that Labour values—support for communities, fairness, and social justice—inform lottery policy-making.


Last week, the Assembly debated ‘Climbing Higher’, the Assembly Government’s vision for a more active, healthy and economically successful nation. There were no serious objections to our central aim of substantially increasing the level of sport and physical activity undertaken in our nation. Such a move will require the Assembly Government to invest in sport and active recreation as preventative healthcare, enabling us all to take more personal responsibility for our own health. However, lottery money can reach the parts that direct taxation cannot reach. No-one wants a completely safe lottery in which no-one is prepared to try something new or take risks, although risks need to be carefully managed.

Finally, the White Paper also mentions how the British Olympic bid should be financed. The Welsh Assembly Government fully supports the British bid to host the Olympics in 2012. All Members would be delighted to see a Welsh athlete win a gold medal on British soil. Indeed, most Members would be delighted to see English athletes do well—I certainly would. Council tax payers in London have no option but to support a British bid. However, it is right that a special lottery game be invented to enable the British public to support a British bid.


Not everything has to take place in London. The Millennium Stadium would be a fine facility in which to hold the football competition, and I will do what I can to maximise the benefits for Wales. The lottery has been a great success. Our task now is to ensure that this success continues in a devolved Britain, and that the people’s lottery pounds are spent on the people’s priorities.
The Minister for Culture, Welsh Language and Sport (Alun Pugh): I spent half an hour on Saturday morning hitting a tennis ball around. This pleasant ministerial duty was in celebration of the opening of the Jones Alexander Barr Tennis Centre in Eirias Park, in north Wales. I do not know whether the next Wimbledon champion will emerge from Colwyn Bay, but I know that £387,000 of Sportlot funding was an essential part of a funding package that has permitted a wonderful new facility to be built in north Wales. We can all point to projects in our constituencies where lottery funding makes a real difference to people’s lives. My personal favourite is the national cycle network, which provides sustainable transport and means fitter, and therefore healthier, citizens. It is also a great deal of fun.


Since it began a decade ago, the lottery has invested over £600 million in projects throughout Wales. Lottery projects, large and small, enrich all of our communities. Overall, the lottery has been a success. It pre-dated devolution and it was therefore opportune that a UK-wide review of lottery funding coincided with the award of the second lottery licence last year. I welcome the Department of Culture, Media and Sport’s White Paper, which contains many proposals for improving lottery distribution arrangements. I am pleased to confirm that lottery funding for the arts, heritage and sport will continue for the foreseeable future. A new distributor will take on the functions of the New Opportunities Fund and of the community fund that will control 50 per cent of the lottery money intended for good causes. It will be a fund for transformation, and will provide grants for smaller projects as well as big capital projects.


Many prospective projects will be able to meet the criteria for more than one funder. There is no reason why a fine building in a Valleys community—perhaps a redundant chapel or miners’ institute—should not be transformed into a community venue for sports and active recreation. It could even be a non-traditional venue for performing arts, which could benefit from the £2 million for the arts outside Cardiff that I outlined in my statement two weeks ago. Such a project could qualify for heritage, sports, and arts funding. Joining up lottery funding to add value to future Government projects protects the key principle of additionality, but reflects people’s desire for lottery funding to make a real difference in their communities.


Three key issues will guide my response to the proposals. First, the Assembly and the Assembly Government need to have more influence in setting strategies and priorities for lottery funding. The White Paper acknowledges and states that we should have more influence, which I welcome. There is a clear commitment to recognising the distinctiveness of the UK’s constituent nations, and the new distributor in Wales will reflect this.


Secondly, one of my concerns about lottery funding is that the most deprived communities in Wales have not always received their fair share of lottery funds and projects. That is despite positive action by distributors, through initiatives such as fair share, which is targeted at some of the most deprived communities. People on low incomes often contribute a disproportionate share of their income to the lottery pot. There is a good case to suggest that these communities should receive a disproportionate benefit from funding therefore. Otherwise, critics of the lottery could suggest that it is a regressive, albeit voluntary, tax. As a Labour Minister, I strongly believe in the principle of progressive taxation. I will ensure that Labour values—support for communities, fairness, and social justice—inform lottery policy-making.


Last week, the Assembly debated ‘Climbing Higher’, the Assembly Government’s vision for a more active, healthy and economically successful nation. There were no serious objections to our central aim of substantially increasing the level of sport and physical activity undertaken in our nation. Such a move will require the Assembly Government to invest in sport and active recreation as preventative healthcare, enabling us all to take more personal responsibility for our own health. However, lottery money can reach the parts that direct taxation cannot reach. No-one wants a completely safe lottery in which no-one is prepared to try something new or take risks, although risks need to be carefully managed.

Finally, the White Paper also mentions how the British Olympic bid should be financed. The Welsh Assembly Government fully supports the British bid to host the Olympics in 2012. All Members would be delighted to see a Welsh athlete win a gold medal on British soil. Indeed, most Members would be delighted to see English athletes do well—I certainly would. Council tax payers in London have no option but to support a British bid. However, it is right that a special lottery game be invented to enable the British public to support a British bid.


Not everything has to take place in London. The Millennium Stadium would be a fine facility in which to hold the football competition, and I will do what I can to maximise the benefits for Wales. The lottery has been a great success. Our task now is to ensure that this success continues in a devolved Britain, and that the people’s lottery pounds are spent on the people’s priorities.