Tom Harrison to Face Further Parliamentary Scrutiny

EWCB chief to face Parliamentary committee on Covid's impact on game.

George Dobell.

Cricinfo.

Friday, 1 My 2020.

PTG 3108-15377.

Tom Harrison, the chief executive of the England and Wales Cricket Board (EWCB), has been called to appear in front of the UK Parliament’s Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Committee as part of an inquiry into the impact of Covid-19 on sport in the UK.  He is to appear before Members of Parliament next Tuesday in a session that will be conducted online and will also feature testimony from Rick Parry, chairman of the English Football League, and Bill Sweeney, chief executive of the Rugby Football Union.

The executives will be asked to assess how their sports have been hit by the lockdown imposed in March and discuss their strategies for the future. The impact of Covid-19 on grassroots sport and participation will also be considered. Dame Katherine Grainger, chair of UK Sport, and Tim Hollingsworth, chief executive of Sport England, will also give evidence.

The DCMA inquiry was launched in April to examine the effect of social and financial measures both in the immediate and long term on a range of areas including within the DCMS sector. It will consider the effectiveness of what is being done in the longer term by the government and what further support might be needed.

Harrison has previously admitted that losing the whole summer will cost cricket in England and Wales at least £UK300 million ($A610.5m), and told Sky Sports on Thursday following the postponement of the Hundred that "the thought of returning to a scenario where we have crowds watching live cricket in this country this summer is not something that is realistic in the context of the public health crisis that we're going through” (PTG 3106-15366, 1 May 2020).

It emerged last week that the EWCB had been asked by the DCMS to facilitate sports' investigation into the viability of staging games behind closed doors (PTG 3099-15329, 26 April 2020). Harrison revealed there had been regular contact between executives running various sports in an attempt to share knowledge and expedite a return to at least some sort of live sport.

Harrison endured an uncomfortable few hours in front of the DCMS Committee in October as he was grilled about the EWCB's strategy to increase the popularity of the game (PTG 2930-14545, 27 October 2019) . The enquiry, which included scrutiny on the Hundred's budget and the role of free-to-air television in growing the sport, was shelved in November after a general election was called in the UK.

Colin Graves will step down from his role as ECB chairman earlier than planned, with a confirmed end date to his tenure of August 31.

His term had initially been due to run out in May 2020, but was extended to November 2020 in April 2019 to allow him to oversee the inaugural edition of The Hundred. With the new competition’s first season delayed until 2021, and Ian Watmore having been confirmed as his successor, Graves has requested to bring his stint to a close at the end of August.

“It feels important to both the game and the ECB Board, to allow Ian Watmore to commence his role earlier than originally agreed,” Graves said. “I have no doubt that his wealth of experience in sport, business and government will be invaluable as we navigate through this crisis.

“I have been extremely heartened by how cricket has come together in these recent, unimaginable times. There remains a long road ahead, but I have immense confidence in the excellent leadership of Tom Harrison, our Executive Management Team and the ECB Board as they shape the direction of our response to COVID-19.

“It has been a privilege to work with so many passionate people across the game who are driven by their belief in cricket’s power to improve lives and connect communities.

“There is still much to be done in the coming months as I continue to lead the ECB during this challenging time. As we get closer to August I will look forward to saying my farewells and sharing good wishes to all those I have worked alongside.”

Watmore has been confirmed as chair elect after a review into allegations of wrongdoing in his previous role as a non-executive director of the English Football League. The EFL had commissioned an independent inquiry into allegations that Watmore was involved in talks of forming a breakaway league that would leave behind Sky, the EFL’s broadcast partners, potentially jeopardising a £595m TV deal, but after reviewing the report that resulted from the inquiry, the ECB has found no evidence of wrongdoing. Wisden