Govt to promote sports sponsorship

Press, 5 March 1987, Page 35

Govt to promote sports sponsorship

PA Auckland The Government says it will urge booming businesses to provide the multi-million-dollar sponsorship needed for the Hillary Commission for Recreation and Sport.

The Minister of Recreation and Sport, Mr Moore, told the commission when it met sports and local body leaders in Auckland, "There is a recognition at corporate level of a responsibility to assist.”

The commission, a 12member body headed by the sports administrator, Sir Ronald Scott, would replace the Ministry of Recreation and Sport and the Council for Recreation and Sport. The new body would be funded by Government grants, money from the Lotteries Commission, and pending corporate sponsorship. One of the two major thrusts of the commission would be to identify how to help children described by Mr Moore as “in tough times.”

He said $50,000 had already been set aside for a study by the commission. He estimated $1 million was available to help up to 5000 children a year.

The other major aim, he said, was for a publicity campaign in co-ordina-tion with recreation groups to “get people,off their chuffs.” Mr Moore said hundreds of thousands of dollars would be provided by the Government, but he believed corporate sponsorship could increase that five-fold.

Before the meeting, he said it was crucial for the bill on Lotto to be passed in Parliament if the commission was to be funded properly. Meanwhile, the head of the commission, Sir Ronald Scott, said he hoped sport would be returned to an official part of the school day. The commission, which would function formally from April 1, would meet the Ministers of Health and Education and the heads of their respective Government departments to discuss the place of sport in schools. Sir Ronald said most of the young people in trouble with authorities were not active in recreational sport. “One must assume that they have not had the chance to learn skills or

have been deprived of sport through lack of family interest or financial limitations,” he said. “If we care about society, and if it is true that people involved (in recreation) are less likely to become anti-social, then education is so important.” Sir Ronald said another means of getting people involved in sport and recreation was through sponsorship by small businesses.

In the past, he said, it was not worthwhile for shop owners to pay for or back a local sports team or another group.

However, since the Hillary Commission had the status of a charity, any money channeled through it would allow a dairy owner, for example, to get the money back through tax.

Sir Ronald said there was an enormous scope for low-grade teams in sports with many players to gain sponsorship from small businesses.

“That could mean the difference between someone being able to play or not.”