Dear Constituent,

Thank you for contacting me about the reopening of swimming pools.

I am a keen swimmer myself so I’m sure you will not be surprised that I am in complete agreement with you.

I am certainly one of the many people are keen to get back into the pool, so I appreciate the frustration of seeing announcements on the restarting of many other sports and activities. I know this is especially of concern to people my age and above, often whose main form of exercise is swimming, and for the parents of primary children who are missing their chance to learn to swim as part of the national curriculum.

As we begin to reopen the economy, it’s important that we do not increase the risk of transmission which is why “close proximity” venues such as swimming pools, water parks and spas will need to remain closed for now. There are concerns about transmission around points of contact within such facilities, like changing rooms due to the high volume of contacts.

I know Ministers are committed to reopening facilities as soon as it is safe to do so, including swimming pools. The Sport Working Group, led by the Sports Minister, feeds into the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s Cultural Renewal Taskforce and ensures strong sector and expert support for the co-development of guidelines and will help leisure facilities become Covid-secure and re-open as early as possible.

I have also tweeted in support of the #OpenOurPools campaign as you can see here.

Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.

Yours,

EDWARD LEIGH MP