The Premier League lacks a "culture of inclusivity" for disabled fans, says a leading equality campaigner, according to the BBC. Some top-flight clubs have "not yet met guidelines on disability access." Chris Holmes, a member of the Equalities & Human Rights Commission and a nine-time Paralympic swimming champion, told MPs that legal action against clubs and the Premier League "remains an option." Premier League exec Bill Bush said that suggesting clubs were "reluctant" to improve access was "not fair." Last year Premier League clubs "agreed to make their stadiums compliant with official accessibility guidance" by Aug. '17. However, "it is estimated that up to a third of clubs will miss this self-imposed deadline." Bush told a Culture, Media & Sport select committee on Tuesday that the Premier League is not "hiding" by refusing to name the individual clubs likely to miss disabled access targets by next season. Bush: "Several are short and they know it." Holmes said that he "hoped the hearing would lead to further action but warned that both the individual clubs and the league could face legal action if targets continue to be missed." He said, "It's tragic that we've got to a place where we're even talking about sanctions. This should have begun as a positive transformational change to our national game but we are at this stage because nothing's happened for decades" (BBC, 10/18).
