Andy Burnham, the Minister for Sport, at the FT Sport Industry Summit in London yesterday, answered a question from Chris Aylett, CEO of the Motorsport Industry Association (MIA) on Government support for the British Grand Prix.
In the light of the Minister's declared delight at the success of Lewis Hamilton, Aylett asked for confirmation that the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) will support the future of the British Grand Prix as this major event helps UK industry succeed in world markets.
"It would be a travesty if, whilst we celebrate the youngest ever F1 World Champion and a great British victory, our Government fails to ensure that we host a British Grand Prix at Donington for many years to come" said Aylett.
“We will certainly do all we can” replied the Minister. “This is potentially a great era for British Motorsport. You can be assured of our full support to make certain we keep a British Grand Prix in this country.”
He confirmed that ”Lewis Hamilton is a great role model in sport".
Later, Aylett said that such a positive response from the Minister was “good news for the UK industry and its SME businesses, whilst much of the attention of DCMS focuses on the London Olympics. The British Grand Prix reflects so well on our globally successful industry, we must all do what we can to ensure it succeeds at Donington. These are difficult business times. We must keep the spotlight on motorsport and our industry" said Aylett.
For further information, please contact Jayne Thomas on
02476 692600 or email jayne.thomas@the-mia
EDITORS’ NOTE
The Motorsport Industry Association (MIA) is the leading trade association for Motorsport's performance engineering, services and tuning industry. It represents the specialised needs of this highly successful Industry which, although extending throughout the world and rapidly expanding in the developing nations, is centred here in the UK.
The MIA Membership displays a wide demographic spread, including; Motorsport and Performance Engineering companies, race and rally teams, governing bodies, motorsport services, research organisations, race circuits and universities and colleges.
