Parties pledge backing for community stadium plans

A NEW community stadium for York could be on the cards after the General Election – whoever wins – after leading Labour and Tory candidates pledged support for the idea.

Ed Vaizey, who was Tory Shadow Minister for Culture before Parliament was dissolved, detailed his backing in a video released yesterday by A Stadium For York, the fans' group pushing for a new sports facility in the city.

He said that should the Tories win power their Government would "be delighted to work with City of York Council to make this project happen".

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This follows pledges of support made by the all of the major party candidates in both the York Central and York Outer constituencies.

Mr Vaizey is president of a football club in his own Berkshire community, Didcot Town, which recently built a new ground with the support of its council.

Campaign group A Stadium For York said it agreed with Mr Vaizey that the new community stadium "should be seen as one of the pillars that maintain that prosperity" and would attract people to the city.

A spokesman for the group, Thom Feeney, said: "York is a great city but our sport and leisure facilities are nowhere near adequate and the future of the professional teams is under threat.

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"We know that there is plenty of support in York for a new community stadium – but nothing can happen without all of the city's councillors backing the project.

"We have launched a petition that can be signed online at our website – www.astadiumforyork.com – and call on everyone with interest in the project to sign it and ensure that their voice is heard."

Former Secretary of State for Culture Ben Bradshaw said: "We completely support the plans for the new stadium to become a community asset – a community stadium of which the people of York can be rightly proud."

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