The informal meeting of EU sports ministers, which ended on Wednesday, concluded with a "unanimous agreement" on the creation of a "structured dialogue" group between all levels of sport, according to the Spanish Secretary of State for Sport, Jaime Lissavetzky.

In the ministerial meeting held in Madrid, there has been unanimous agreement between the Commission and the party making the proposal, in this case Spain, and total agreement on the need to create the "structured dialogue" group. This group will include representatives from public authorities, the Council, the Commission, the Trio, Member States and the European Parliament; and on the other side, the world of sport, which will have to define who will be its representatives in this group which is going to be created.

The Secretary of State stressed that the group will try to be a forum for sports at every level: "the federations will naturally play a role, but the professional leagues also play another role, there are associations of clubs and then there is the role of the sportsmen and women, who expressed their desire to join this social dialogue involving the Commission and of course the host country, Spain".

In terms of the composition and operability of the "structured dialogue" group, he added that "we have not capped the number of people", and that "it has to be a group that meets permanently and that can also be operational", adding "it has been mentioned that there are highly specific topics that can be dealt with at the same time as the group is functional."

Likewise, to mark the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion in 2010, the EU approved a proposal by the Spanish Presidency to create a new working group on sport and social inclusion.

Proposals from Member States

In the framework of Lisbon Treaty, Commission wants to propose a political framework at EU level and also a dedicated instrument, a programme, to apply these types of policies. The following proposals agreed during the Informal Meeting of Sports Ministers will be included with other proposals by Member States:

• Work in the area of the educational and social role of sport.
• Creation of sporting structures that work appropriately, above all among volunteers and their activities in the area of sports.
• Inclusion of the funding of sports activities.
• The physical and moral integrity of sport, placing special emphasis on dealing with drug use in sport.
• The need to protect minors in the world of sport.
• The importance of accessibility and fair play in sport.
• Greater detail in the dialogue between sports organisations and EU institutions.