According to the UK Green Party website the Green Party will try to achieve the following if they gain power at the 2010 general election:
CMS870 Whilst professional sport is a business, as noted above, its role in representing a community in a spirit of friendship and mutual respect with other communities should never be overlooked. This is especially so in the case of international sport.
CMS871 If a team is representing the nation then the Government should take a role in deciding whether it is appropriate for the team to take part in competition against a country with whom normal friendly, respectful, or diplomatic relations are not possible. The Government should not try to avoid taking action by treating the sport as if it was a private business venture.
CMS872 In determining whether a particular country is appropriate for international sporting contacts consideration should be given to the freedom of access by supporters and media in the country. If host government actions meant that such freedoms for UK citizens and journalists could not be reasonably guaranteed, there should be a presumption against a visit by a representative national team.
CMS873 Strategic national planning should seek to ensure that major national sporting arenas are not all sited in one part of the country and that all can be easily accessed by good public transport links. Wherever practical, the venue for international sporting fixtures should be rotated around various suitable stadia throughout the country, and should avoid being excessively focussed in London.
CMS874 When bidding to host major international sporting competitions, such as World Cups or the Olympics, wherever possible existing facilities should be proposed. No new facilities should be proposed unless their existence will also prove to be useful to the wider local community in the years to follow the games.
CMS875 The UK should use its influence with the world sporting community to encourage the placing of international games across wider geographic areas to prevent excessive negative disruption to the lives and economies of host communities.
CMS876 The televising of major national and international sporting events has a significant influence in inspiring young people to take up sports. It is therefore important to ensure that such events remain available on free-to-air nationwide TV. The Government should resist proposals to remove events from the list of those protected in such a way. It should negotiate to get highlights of major events which are no longer protected in this way, and events staged overseas involving representative national teams, made available on free-to-air TV if possible.
I would be interested to hear both positive and negative views on UK Green Party’s International Sport policies in the comments below?