Football clubs are more than businesses, they provide a sense of community and pride in our local areas. However, growing crowing crowds and increasing revenues are masking the underlying problems which are pushing clubs to the brink of collapse.

In my previous role as Shadow Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, I called for football to be put on a stable footing, with an independent regulator and a proper say for fans. Support for these reforms are widespread across parliament and with fans around the country. The UK Government first published their White Paper on Football governance in February 2023 but it has taken them more than a year to bring forward the legislation.

Urgent action is now needed to ensure that the issues experienced by Reading, Sheffield Wednesday and Scunthorpe are not repeated.

That’s why I’ll be supporting the Football and Governance Bill to establish an independent regulator for football and give fans a greater say on how their clubs are run.