Trevor Mallard
28 June 2000 Speech Notes
Speech to Lincoln University Regional Education Degree Students' Function
Announcement of Sport Review
It's a pleasure to be here tonight.
It's actually quite a big relief. After six months of being Minister for Sport and addressing sporting audiences about
our proposed review, I'm actually in a position now to release the terms of reference and announce who will conduct the
review.
First let me go over why I think it's important that Government be involved in sport, fitness and leisure in the first
place.
While Government does not ‘own’ sport in New Zealand, we do have a responsibility for encouraging vision and leadership
– and that has been sadly lacking in recent years.
As a Government, we have a vested interest in increasing participation in sport and fitness activities. There are
benefits to employment, counteracting criminal and other anti-social behaviour, and health. The health benefits are
particularly critical - latest reports show that one of the causal factors in 6 out of 10 biggest killers in New Zealand
was a lack of physical activity. That's a tragic indictment, but it's a statistic that I will use around the Cabinet
table to convince my colleagues to consider money for vote:sport a good investment.
One of the Government's six key goals is to strengthen national identity. We must celebrate our national identity.
Certainly the sporting sector is an important vehicle to achieving that goal.
I think we can all remember times when as a country we have burst with pride at the success of some of our sporting
heroes. We do have a role, in government, to support excellence so we can experience more of those magic moments.
Before I announce details of the review into sport, I’d like to go over some recent history and set the scene a bit.
In 1985 the then Labour Government commissioned a wide-ranging inquiry into sport in New Zealand. The subsequent report
“Sport on the Move” accompanied a parallel review “Recreation and Government in New Zealand.” The findings of these
reports set up the current environment, which included the establishment of a Crown Entity, the Hillary Commission. In
addition, a funding stream through the Lottery Grants Board to assist sport, fitness and leisure organisations was
secured. The 1995 "Winning Way" report resulted in an improved partnership between the public and private sector for the
support of high performance sport.
Since the 1985 reviews, New Zealand has experienced substantial social and economic change and global shifts in sport
and leisure behaviour have occurred. Our ability to enhance the quality and quantity of sport, fitness and leisure in
New Zealand will be dependent, to a large extent, on our readiness to change and our ability to meet the demands and
expectations of the future. Government needs to provide leadership and certainty by developing a comprehensive and
overarching vision for the future of sport, fitness and leisure in New Zealand.
I think it would be fair to say that Government is not perceived to have a clear and widely understood policy framework
for the sport, fitness and leisure sector.
So the main job of the Taskforce is to clearly define the vision for the sport, fitness and leisure sector that meet the
needs of New Zealanders for the next 25 years.
They will be expected to identify the necessary strategies to encourage and sustain the interest and participation of
New Zealanders in sport, fitness and leisure, and in particular for Maori and Pacific Island communities.
This Government has a major focus on closing the social and economic gaps between Maori and Pacific people and other New
Zealanders. I see the sport sector as having an important role in that objective.
The review will examine the adequacy of the current sport, fitness and leisure delivery system and identify the issues
and constraints impacting on the sport, fitness and leisure sector.
It will look carefully at relationships between club and school sport, physical activity programmes, national
organisations, regional sports trusts, the Hillary Commission, the NZ Olympic Committee and the NZ Sports Foundation and
other funding agencies
It will look at the role of central, regional and local government in the provision of support services and facilities
and the impact of user pays on participation in sport, fitness and leisure activities.
It will look at the impact of the globalisation of sport and the increased commercialism of sport through television and
mega events.
It will look at the promotion of trade and tourism through sport, fitness and leisure.
I've brought with me copies of the terms of reference. They are very comprehensive and we have certainly given taskforce
members a huge challenge.
But I'm really pleased with the calibre of people who have agreed to serve the taskforce.
It will be headed by John Graham, former Headmaster of Auckland Grammar, former All Black captain and former manager of
the NZ Cricket Team.
Other members will be lawyer and mountaineer David Collins; former world squash champion Dame Susan Devoy; New Zealand
Recreation Association President Janet MacKay; Black Ferns Captain Farah Palmer - a coaching co-ordinator, and nearly a
PhD; Cardiolologist Dr Mark Simmonds, who is a Clinical Senior Lecturer at Wellington School of Medicine and a keen all
round sportsman; and Glenn Turner former New Zealand Cricket Team Captain and Coach, and former Chief Executive of the
Otago Sports Trust.
I hope to have a report back to them by Christmas so that we can start implementing their recommendations as part of
next year's Budget round.
I'd like to close by doing a bit of a promotion for one of the items in this year's Budget which you may or may not have
heard about.
A new $9 million initiative is to provide aspiring sports stars with access to education scholarships.
The Sport Education Scholarship fund is to enable emerging and talented young New Zealand athletes to pursue tertiary
study and elite level sport development concurrently.
It's offering support to our future sporting stars so they can reach their potential in sport while still gaining a
solid education to fall back on.
The scholarships will be available from next year to athletes who have the potential to represent New Zealand
internationally.
We estimate that at least 100 scholarships will be available from the start of next year. They will average about $10,
000 each and include tertiary fees and a living allowance. We're currently working through the final details and
conditions.
I'm sure that many people in this room will appreciate the value that that kind of support will provide and I hope that
you will encourage the next generation of students to apply.