Labour has refused to rule out forcing Premier League clubs to pay a 10% tax on every player they sign. Thangam Debbonaire, Shadow Sport Secretary, said the option is on the table as she looks at sweeping changes to the way the Beautiful Game is regulated. She vowed to re-examine proposals put forward in a 2021 fan-led review, some of which were dropped by the Tories.
These include a levy on transfers from overseas or between top-league clubs, which could see teams stump up an extra £2million on a £20million transfer. This cash would then be distributed across the football pyramid to benefit smaller clubs. Ms Debbonaire vowed to prevent a repeat of the collapse of Bury FC in 2019 and make the game fairer.
She told reporters: " We don't want another Bury. We don't want another situation like Scunthorpe where they pretty much lost their ground." Quizzed on whether this meant the transfer levy - recommended in a review headed by former Tory MP Tracey Crouch - will be considered, the Labour frontbencher said: "I'm going to look at everything again that was in Tracey Crouch's report.
"I think it's important we go back to those principles just to make sure there's not something that's been missed that is needed in order to ensure financial sustainability is back on the table." Labour vowed to press ahead with a Football Governance Bill after Tory efforts to regulate the way clubs are run collapsed when Rishi Sunak called a snap election. Ms Debbonaire said her party is committed .
