Push Play era over as National set new path

JOHN KEY'S National-led government is poised to follow through on its pre-election promise and overhaul the sporting sector, including Sparc.

The government funding body has a wide brief too wide for most including what critics claim is a "social engineering" component brought in under the last government.

Now, the Sunday Star-Times understands, a shift in direction is imminent, with "less emphasis" on campaigns to get Kiwis to lead a healthy and active lifestyle, such as Push Play.

Instead, greater priority will be placed on high performance sport, and ensuring New Zealand's sporting clubs, which are in decline, are in a fit enough state to serve their communities' sporting needs.

Sparc chief executive Peter Miskimmin said a detailed report on the matter would be released in about "six weeks".

"We have set our strategic direction for the next six years," he confirmed.

"I guess there will be a bit of intrigue around that.

"It won't be revolutionary. It will be evolutionary. But it will give the people a sense of where the focus and emphasis will be over the next six years.

"Areas like social marketing, Push Play and Mission On, are all less of a priority than they have been, so there will be some changes in that area and that will free up some resources to go out into other areas.

"I don't want to pre-empt that until we come out with the strategy but certainly the strategy will align very much with where the National Party's [stance on] schools [sport] and young children and high performance, plus in other areas like talent development and identification, supporting clubs and how they connect with schools.

"The issue of clubs is we are not necessarily going to give them a whole lot of money. It's more around working with national sporting organisations to ensure they can deliver and what hits the ground at the coal face is being supported."

In a pre-election speech, Key launched a scathing attack on Sparc, which in the absence of any formal document, became National's policy on sport.

Sparc tactfully rejected all of the incoming prime minister's assertions: that the organisation was top heavy with highly paid staff; that too much of its budget was spent on administrative costs; that it was profligate with its funding in some areas, especially its website expenditure; and that the government's annual contribution to the sector would be more efficiently distributed by going directly to clubs.

Observers, particularly on the left, have been waiting for some action similar to that foreshadowed by Key.

Murray McCully, who has inherited the sporting portfolio considered small beer in political circles has so far kept a low profile.

But that now appears set to change.

Government departments are bracing themselves for cuts on Budget day, May 28, and sport is no different.

Miskimmin said: "I guess part of it will depend of what happens during the Budget.

"Clearly it is difficult ground in terms of the economy. I guess all government agencies will wait and see what happens in the Budget and see what money can be retained. That will have some influence on what we can do in the short term, anyway.

"In this climate if you can maintain where you are, that's a bonus and a win."

Miskimmin said Sparc had been able to "reduce its head count" through natural churn.

He was unable to say by how many.

Sporting types and the media have often wondered why Sparc was lumped with making sure New Zealanders are fit and healthy. Many argued it was a public health issue, and the Nats appear to agree.

- © Fairfax NZ News