Speeches by Dillon.

“The shadow Minister may be coming to this point. His amendment states, “No football governance statement may have effect unless approved by resolution of both Houses of Parliament”, but on the other hand he argues for more independence for the regulator. Surely Parliament and, by extension, political parties having to …”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Turner. By what measure will it be possible to work out that the cost of the Independent Football Regulator has a direct consequence on the price of tickets? For example, a club could look to recoup any losses from a regulator by increasing shirt sales, or by puttin…”

“The shadow Minister outlined a number of deadlines that come up, but another of the deadlines in football is transfer windows. The ability to be granted a provisional licence would allow clubs more certainty to make signings and not fall foul of deadlines.”

“I seek further clarification from the Minister. Subsection (1)(c) of both new clauses refers to “unregulated clubs who are reasonably likely to become regulated clubs in the next football season.” They would stand outside the remit of the Bill if unamended, but would the Minister’s view be that the regulator should eng…”

“I am grateful to the Minister for her response, and I thank the hon. Member for Sheffield South East for drawing that conclusion from the Minister in his useful remarks. I beg to ask leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. Question proposed, That the clause stand part of the Bill.”

“Supporters’ trusts and football fan bodies across the country support the establishment of a regulator, because they can see what the greater good is. Does the hon. Gentleman not accept that, even if there was a small increase in ticket prices, fans across the country would rather that there was a regulator tackling th…”

“I rise in support of new clause 1, which starts by saying: “The IFR must establish and supervise a scheme aimed at providing…support to any person who has developed a neurodegenerative condition”. The hon. Member for Old Bexley and Sidcup referred to an existing scheme run by the Premier League, which initially put £1 …”

“I sold my shares in Manchester United to the phoenix fund, which exists to buy the club if it ever comes back on the market.”

“It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Sir Jeremy. Amendment 116 also says that the chairman must not campaign “on behalf of a candidate”, which also applies at a local authority level. The regulator could have a friend standing as an independent candidate for a council. That would not be party politics, but th…”

“Seb Coe is a successful leader of sports bodies in this country and of our 2012 Olympics. He is a former Conservative MP and peer. I saw him act with integrity and did not question his political past. Why can people not act with integrity and be members of political parties? This is looking to spin a political angle wh…”

“I seek clarity. The shadow Minister said that the chief executive would not be able to negotiate their own pay, but if they were already at the limit and they were appointed on a rate of £172,153 per annum, they would not be able to receive any inflation increases, because the amendment would tie the pay not to the Pri…”

“I have a football at home signed by Sir Geoff Hurst, so I know exactly how heavy those old balls were, particularly when they got wet. We have seen coaching improvements so that children no longer head the football. That has come about because of the experiences of footballers who played in the ’50s, ’60s, ’70s and ’80…”

“Proposed new sub-paragraph (3A) says: “Notwithstanding the remuneration of the Chief Executive Officer”, and it does not say whether any other members of staff could be paid the same as the chief executive, so it would do nothing to limit the costs of the operation—they could all be offered £172,000 a year. Part of the…”

“Sorry, Madam Deputy Speaker. We plead with the Minister and the Government to take action on behalf of all of us as hon. Members in this House, and to do the right thing and show leadership. We are capable of leadership; we need to act.”

“From the Father of the House to the 2024 intake, we are hearing across the Chamber—from Labour, Conservative, Green, Plaid and Scottish National colleagues—a consensus about what the Government need to do on behalf of the British people. We need our Government to recognise the Palestinian state, we need to make sure th…”

“In his statement, the Minister said that there could be no role for Hamas in the future of Gaza. I support that, but there can be no future for Gaza unless the killing and destruction ends. That is why, in September last year, it was welcome that the Government suspended 29 arms export licences, following concern that …”

“I draw Members’ attention to my membership of the football APPG and the women’s football APPG, which both exist to safeguard and improve the game that we love. I have also attended various briefings by interested organisations, such as Fair Game. It is clear that there is wide support for the principle of establishing …”

“A Tottenham fan would be able to sell the dust. Although football clubs are owned by wealthy individuals or investment groups, they belong to their communities. Financial fair play has created unintended consequences such as selling home-grown players to get greater profit, or selling off a women’s team as an accountin…”

“I thank the hon. Member for his intervention, which gets to the heart of this debate. Whether it is building a damp-proof course correctly or installing cutting-edge climate technology, the Government have a responsibility to ensure that a strong regulator holds developers to account when they fail. As Members around t…”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Jardine. I congratulate the hon. Member for Sherwood Forest (Michelle Welsh) on securing this important debate and on her powerful description of the impact on her constituent, Sara, of the 70 remaining defects in her home. Given that 89% of homeowners are satisfied wi…”