ABSTRACT
In the run-up to the June 1970 General Election firm positions concerning the status and role of the Sports Council were adopted by the interested parties and the vested interests. It was quite clear to those close to matters that the role and status of the Sports Council, and indeed the role of the Minister of Sport, rested on the outcome of the General Election. The Labour Party’s view was status quo whilst the Conservative Party was committed to ‘make the Sports Council an independent body and make it responsible for the grant-aiding functions at present exercised by the Government.’1 It is interesting to recall that those who proposed this latter view saw its implementation by statute for as yet no public mention had been made of bringing this about by Royal Charter.
