Brown set to inject £27million into sport

Gordon Brown today unveiled plans to pump £27million into a new National Sports Foundation to improve sports facilities across the country.

The Chancellor confirmed in his Budget speech that the Foundation, which has been masterminded by Sport England chairman Patrick Carter, would be set up to attract public and private cash into projects.

The NSF will work on the same lines as the Football Foundation, which uses money from the Premier League, the Football Association, the Government and the private sector to improve grass-roots facilities.

The decision to go ahead with the body is likely to mark the start of major changes to the way sport is run. Lord Carter is working on how the body would fit in with Sport England and UK Sport, which use Lottery money.