Last week the Labour Party announced that, should it be returned to power after next year’s general election, it was considering the imposition of a financial levy on English football’s Premier League. Sport and politics are usually best kept apart but these proposals will, I’m sure, resonate with many of us.

Almost daily we read of the mind-blowing figures involved at the highest levels of sport and particularly football. For example the Premier League recently entered into a three season contract with the big television companies whereby the League will receive £3 billion in viewing rights. Add to this the fact that certain top players are receiving up to £250,000 a week just for playing the game it is easy to see why there is a certain (putting it very mildly!) disaffection with the game.

The backdrop to this is the continued sale of sports playing fields by local authorities, a distinct lack of funding, a lack of facilities throughout the land and a lack of emphasis on sport and personal fitness in many of our state schools. Indeed, it was estimated that last year a mere £5 million was spent by local authorities on the maintenance of football facilities nationwide – put another way, less than half of what some of the top Premier League footballers were paid in the same period.

So the Labour Party’s proposal to take some of the money from the top level of the game and spend it at grass-roots level appears to be a good one. In addition they are considering a further tax on the betting industry which evidently turns over in excess of £6 billion each year.

One doesn’t have to be a socialist to relish the thought of money being taken from fat capitalists to be spent not on fast cars and luxury yachts but on the construction of facilities for disadvantaged children in the poorer areas of our country. A vote winner, for sure.