UK general election 2019: What each party are offering to football fans in London

Football has been on the agenda for the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats this election but which political party is offering what to fans ahead of polling day on December 12?

On Thursday December 12 the UK will go to the polls to elect a new government.

Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn, as leaders of the Conservatives and the Labour Party, respectively, are the front-runners the race to be named prime minister.

However, the Liberal Democrats under Jo Swinson are also in contention to win seats in Greater London, with Nigel Farage's Brexit Party and the Green Party standing in a number of constituencies too.

football.london have dug through the manifestos and contacted each party to find out what they are promising football fans this election, and their stances on the key issues that affect the game and its supporters.

The Green Party and UKIP made no mention of their plans for policies on football in their election promises and did not respond to requests for comment at the time of publication.

Fan welfare, ticketing and accessibility

All three of the major parties - Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats - have made pledges this election to do more on issues that cover some aspect of fan welfare, be it accessibility, gambling addiction or ticketing and travel.

Conservatives

The Conservatives have said they will support the growth in disability football this election, although it is not included in their manifesto.

Nicky Morgan, the outgoing secretary of state for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport announced the pledge as part of a raft of promises to increase funding into grassroots football on December 7.

"Walking football for people with disabilities is growing in importance," she told Sky Sports after the announcement.

Labour

Labour have promised to 'push' sports authorities to provide for fans with disabilities and make football clubs comply with their obligations under the 2010 Equality Act.

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan, Shadow Sports Minister for Labour, told football.london that her party will "make sure all stadiums are fully accessible for fans with disabilities."

On ticketing and travel, Labour have said they will enforce anti-bot legislation to give fans fair opportunity to buy tickets and will introduce a 'Fans' Fare' scheme through the Department of Transport if they take power to protect away fans from the costs when fixture dates are changed by broadcasters.

Lib Dems

Brexit and problem gambling are the chief concerns of the Liberal Democrats when it comes to fan welfare this election.

The party have said they will restrict gambling advertising and make gambling companies fund programmes to help addicts and establish a new ombudsman to act for supporters.

"For fans travelling to Europe to watch games, Brexit will mean fewer protections if you get ill whilst away," a spokesperson told football.london.

"Unless the UK and the EU agree otherwise, European Health Insurance Cards will no longer be valid, meaning that fans will need to take out travel insurance or risk a huge healthcare bill.

"Plus, you won’t just be able to hop on a train or a plane either. From 2021, the EU will make you complete an online authorisation form before you travel."

The Brexit Party

A spokesperson for The Brexit Party told football.london that they are committed to working with football clubs to ensure that disability access is improved.

They have also pledged to create veterans and service personnel ID card for current and former members of the armed forces and would ensure that complimentary tickets and reduced prices on tickets would be made available to current and former service personnel.

Fan ownership and football governance

The demise of Bury and the threats to the futures of Bolton Wanderers and Macclesfield Town have put the issue of football governance back at the top of the football agenda.

Fans of a number of London clubs have had their own experiences with dysfunctional owners, such as supporters of Charlton Athletic and their opposition to Roland Duchatelet.

Arsenal's owner, Stan Kroenke, has also faced criticism for taking the club private amid protests over his ownership of the Gunners.

What are the parties offering to fans over how their teams are run?

Conservatives

The Conservative manifesto included a promise to establish a £150million 'Community Ownership Fund' to aid local communities take over control of post offices and pubs as well as football clubs.

They also promise a 'fan-led review of football governance' into owners and directors.

Labour

Labour have promised to review the 'fit and proper persons test' for club owners and directors and want to give supporters trusts the ability to appoint and remove at least two directors from the club board, and purchase shares when a club changes owner.

They also want to overhaul 'regulations around the governance and ownership of clubs'.

Lib Dems

The Liberal Democrats have put their focus on challenging football authorities to do more to tackle racism, sexism and homophobia in the game this election.

"More than 300 reports of discrimination were reported to Kick it Out last season, a 46% increase on the previous year," a spokesperson for the party told football.london.

"We will take a zero-tolerance approach to racism, sexism and homophobia in sport, supporting campaign groups like Kick it Out.

"If the sport can’t get its act together, Liberal Democrats have previously argued for compulsory diversity and equality training to be provided to professional players, directors, administrators and referees."

The Liberal Democrats have also criticised plans from the Conservatives to end freedom of movement, which they claim will make it harder for British clubs to attract foreign talent and prevent players like Jadon Sancho experiencing football abroad.

"Brexit uncertainty has cost them hundreds of millions of pounds extra in transfer fees because of the weakness of the pound against the euro," said a spokesperson.

"We estimated that in the summer 2017 transfer window, English clubs paid £114 million more for European signings than they would have done a year earlier."

Funding grassroots football

Funding for facilities and pitches outside of the professional game has been a key focus for the Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats this election.

Conservatives

However, specific policies on football at a grassroots level were absent from the Conservative manifesto, but the party has since announced plans to spend £550million on a programme to ensure every family in England is, on average, 15 minutes from a quality football pitch by 2030.

This would include the delivery of 2,000 new astroturf pitches and the fixing of 20,000 grass pitches over the next decade after the cancellation of 150,000 matches across the country last season, according to the Conservatives' figures.

Labour

Labour meanwhile want to pass on 5% of the Premier League's income from TV deals to fund facilities and pitches, and have criticised the proposals put forward by the Conservatives.

Tom Watson, Labour's shadow secretary for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport said: "We've lost over 800 pitches as well as hundreds more swimming pools, sports halls and tennis courts. A last minute election pledge can’t make up for years of brutal cuts."

According to Labour, there has been a 63% drop (£660million) in council spending on sport since 2010 due to government cuts on local funding.

Lib Dems

The Liberal Democrats have promised to protect elite and grassroots sports funding through the National Lottery.

The Brexit Party

"The Brexit Party is a young party formed around the critical issue of this election, Brexit," a spokesperson for the Brexit Party told football.london.

"As such we don’t aspire to government and therefore aren't in a position to present detailed policy in all areas.

"Our policy approach is that the selection of projects prioritized for infrastructure development would be locally driven. Investments that support football at grassroots level could form part of this development drive."

The Brexit Party have pledged to scrap HS2 and instead divert £100billion to spend on areas of the country that require investment.

Safe standing

Brentford, QPR and Tottenham Hotspur are among the clubs to have consulted their fans or made plans for safe standing at their stadiums.

Spurs have already included rail seating in their new stadium while other London-based teams, such as Millwall, are understood to be monitoring developments, but what are the positions of the parties on safe standing this election?

Conservatives

The Conservatives have said that they will work toward introducing safe standing in collaboration with fans and clubs.

Labour

Labour too back the introduction of safe standing and want devolve the decision-making process to clubs, fans and the relevant safety authorities.

Lib Dems

The Liberal Democrats want to move toward introducing safe standing into football and will call for the Sports Grounds Safety Authority to develop new licensing conditions for grounds and guidance for clubs.

"The current system doesn't work; fans who attend matches continue to stand, but do so unsafely," said the party's Leader of the Opposition on Manchester City Council, John Leech. "These new proposals will make match days safer for spectators.

"Safe Standing is a perfect hat-trick for fans; more choice, a better atmosphere, and cheaper tickets. I'm so pleased that real progress is being made, but it's an idea whose time is long overdue."

The Brexit Party

A spokesperson for The Brexit Party told football.london that they would support a move towards safe standing and want to work in conjunction with clubs, fans and the relevant safety authorities.

Women's football

London is home to some of the biggest and most successful clubs in women's football, including recent Women's Super League title winners Arsenal and Chelsea.

Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham are have teams in the topflight while Charlton, Crystal Palace, London Bees and London City Lionesses play in the second tier.

The English national team have also set new new attendance record at Wembley Stadium for women's football, and all three major parties have made promises to support the sport at this election.

Conservatives

The Conservatives have cited the success of the Lionesses at the 2018 World Cup in France as their inspiration for wanting to invest more money into the growth of women's football.

They claim their plans will benefit disadvantaged communities with 40% of their planned funding targets at the most deprived 20% of the country.

Labour

Labour claim to have already made an impact on women's football by calling for the Women's World Cup to be added to the list of key sporting events that are required to be broadcast on free-to-air TV. This was made government policy in July 2019.

Lib Dems

Liberal Democrat candidate for Mayor of London, Siobhan Benita, wants to drive a bid to host the 2027 Women's World Cup in London.

"The FA estimates that over 2.5 million women and girls now play the sport in England," said a spokesperson. "Bringing football back home can unite the nation, connect communities and provide a vital boost to women’s grassroots football."

World Cup 2030 in London

The prospect of hosting the men's World Cup in across England and the Republic of Ireland in 2030 is an ambition shared by the major parties at this election.

Conservatives

Boris Johnson has promised to throw his support behind a joint bid between England and Ireland to host the 2030 World Cup.

"If elected with a Conservative majority, I as Prime Minister will put my heart and soul behind the case for a UK and Ireland World Cup in 2030," he said.

"I want this tournament to be about more than just football. I want it to transform lives with a legacy to match the 2012 Olympics."

Labour

Labour claim that former prime minister and Conservative leader Theresa May followed their lead to back a World Cup bid for 2030 when they first announced their support for the idea in July 2018.

The party have also taken issue with the Conservatives over the legacy of the 2012 Olympics which they have promised to match if the country were to win the rights to host the World Cup.

Labour claim that cuts due to austerity have forced the closure of 1,295 grass pitches, swimming pools, sports halls and athletic tracks in the last two years, as reported by the Mirror.

Lib Dems

The Liberal Democrats have positioned themselves as the party to stop Brexit and claim that leaving the European Union would harm chances of hosting a World Cup in the UK.

"Earlier this year, Liberal Democrats revealed how Brexit could harm the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham," said a spokesperson.

"A memo written by games organisers showed they were worried that Brexit would lead to a fall in sponsorship revenue and ticket sales, an increase in procurement costs and the loss of EU intelligence and security data."

The Brexit Party

The Brexit Party would support a join England and Ireland bid to host the 2030 World Cup.

A spokesperson told football.london that the tournament would be "a fantastic opportunity to open our arms to the wider world beyond the EU."

How to vote in the UK general election 2019

The UK general election takes place on Thursday December 12 with polling stations open from 7am to 10pm.

Voters do not need their poll card or photo ID to vote in the general election but must vote at their assigned polling station.

To find your polling station, visit WhereDoIVote.co.uk.

Full details on how to vote can be found on the Gov.uk website.