10. Short Debate: The more I practice, the luckier I am: Sports facilities in our rural communities

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:48 pm on 9 February 2022.

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Photo of Dawn Bowden Dawn Bowden Labour 5:48, 9 February 2022

Thank you. Thank you very much, Llywydd, and thank you, Mabon, for bringing this debate forward. This is a subject very close to my heart, and what I would say, I love the title of the debate: 'The more I practise, the luckier I am', because all I can think is that all the teams that I support clearly don't practise very much because they're not very lucky, that's for sure. But it is an important debate, Mabon, and it was a very thought-provoking debate, and it was good to hear so many contributions in a cross-party debate where I could agree on virtually everything that was said. So, thanks to everybody for that.

So, can I start by saying I want to state very, very clearly at the outset that investing in our nation's sports facilities that are accessible and enhance the opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity is a key priority for the Welsh Government? And I would be absolutely delighted to come and visit your constituency at some point and see some of the facilities that you already have and that we potentially can develop in the future. Now, this commitment is a key strand of the programme for government and a personal commitment of mine. Investing in our facilities is a key to unlocking so much of the potential as a nation. As we turn our sights to our recovery from the pandemic, expanding on the opportunities to increase participation to support our mental and physical health will be more important than ever.