Informal Meeting of EU Minister of Sport - The ministers call upon the sports movement to 'uphold ethical standards and the integrity of sport at all levels'
Romain Schneider, minister of Sport, at the press conference following the informal meeting of Ministers of Sport on 7 July 2015
An informal meeting of EU Sports Ministers was held on 6 and 7 July 2015 in Luxembourg to discuss EU representation in the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), relations between the EU and the sports movement and relations with the Council of Europe in the field of sport.
After the meeting, Luxembourg's Minister of Sport, Romain Schneider, expressed his 'complete satisfaction' with the outcome of the two days of reflection and dialogue on the issues that Luxembourg, in the context of the Luxembourg Presidency of the Council of the EU, put forward for discussion during this meeting of ministers.
Together with the European Commissioner for Sport, Tibor Navracsics i, the Luxembourg Presidency sought to highlight the 'positive' aspects of sport. 'Sport is above all an activity which promotes well-being, creates ties, brings individuals closer together, generates employment and strengthens social cohesion', stated Romain Schneider. 'It is this positive view of sport that the Presidency wishes to highlight over the next six months', he added.
EU representation and coordination in the WADA Foundation Board
EU Sports Ministers stressed the importance of strengthening the role of the EU in the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). 'All the proposals put forward by the ministers seek to strengthen the role of the EU within this important international institution, which is very important in terms of ethics in sports and the health of athletes', emphasised Romain Schneider. The Presidency intends to ensure the adoption of conclusions to improve EU representation and the coordination process between Member States at the Council meeting of Sports Ministers on 24 November 2015.
By way of explanation, the Foundation Board, which constitutes the supreme decision-making body of WADA, is composed of 28 members equally distributed between the sports movement and government institutions. Europe holds 5 seats out of the 18 allocated to public authorities. Three seats are allocated to the EU and two seats to the Council of Europe. The three current representatives of the EU are Sports Minister Romain Schneider, representing the current Trio of EU Presidencies, Chris Agius, Secretary of State for Research, Innovation, Youth and Sports of the Republic of Malta representing the next Trio of EU Presidencies, and Philippe Muyters, Flemish Minister of Employment, Economy, Innovation and Sports of Belgium, as the expert at governmental level.
EU representation and coordination in the WADA Foundation Board is based on a 2011 Council resolution. The resolution provides that 'by 31 December 2015', the Council 'shall review the experience gained' and consider 'whether any adjustments to the arrangement' established by the resolution are required. This is what the Luxembourg Presidency therefore proposes to do in order to suggest any necessary improvements.
Relations with the sports movement
'Concerning current issues to be discussed with regard to the governance of sport, a number of delegations, whilst recognising the limits of their powers, expressed their concern and called upon the sports movement to uphold ethical standards and the integrity of sport at all levels', Romain Schneider further explained.
Moreover, the Presidency wished to strengthen the dialogue between the sports movement, public authorities and European institutions. Four prominent leaders of European and international sporting federations - Folker Hellmund (Director of the European Olympic Committee EU Office); Gianni Infantino (UEFA General Secretary); Bernard Lapasset (Chairman of World Rugby); and André Meyer (President of the European Volleyball Confederation) - have therefore been invited to submit their political expectations to ministers, in particular to increase recognition of the inclusion of sport in Article 165 of the Lisbon Treaty.
'The priority to be given to local training of young players, the issue of financial fair play and the problem of third-party ownership of players have all therefore been addressed in the presence of sports movement representatives', stated Romain Schneider.
Romain Schneider, Minister of Sport, with Dorata Idzi, Deputy Secretary of State of the Polish Ministery of Sports and Tourism
© eu2015lu.eu / Charles Caratini
Relations with the Council of Europe in the field of sports
Ministers exchanged views with Anne Brasseur, President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, to facilitate reinforced cooperation with this institution, especially with regard to their joint battle against the negative aspects of sport such as violence, doping and the manipulation of sports competitions.
Luxembourg, Spain and Poland sign the Convention on the manipulation of sports competitions
Aside from the meeting, Luxembourg, Spain and Poland signed the Convention of the Council of Europe on the manipulation of sports competitions. The aim is to 'relaunch a process of collecting European signatures', explained Romain Schneider. The main aims of this convention are to prevent and detect the manipulation of sports competitions, sanction penalties and disciplinary action, facilitate the exchange of information and to promote cooperation between competent public authorities, sports organisations and sports betting operators at national and international level. It has already been signed by nine other EU Member States (Germany, Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Lithuania, the Netherlands and Portugal) and by nine non-EU States.
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