Shanghai People's Congress Holds a Symposium on Sports Legislation Research
On September 18th, some members of the Standing Committee of the Municipal People's Congress conducted on-site research on sports venues such as Shanghai Swimming Pool and Shanghai Sports Stadium, and held a legislative research symposium on the Shanghai Sports Development Regulations.
In June 2022, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress comprehensively revised the Sports Law, enriched and improved the basic system of sports rule of law, and deepened the modernization of the governance system and capacity in the field of sports. Taking this as an opportunity, Shanghai fully launched relevant local regulatory legislation work in September last year.
The meeting heard a report from the Municipal Sports Bureau on relevant legislative work and clarified four main problems that need to be solved through legislation in Shanghai's current sports industry: there is still a gap between the current situation of sports facility construction and management and the expectations of the general public, the construction of sports teachers and reserve talent teams is not in line with the needs of youth sports development, the growth of the sports industry, especially the competition performance and fitness leisure industry, does not match the status and image of Shanghai, and the existing regulatory methods of the sports market are difficult to meet the requirements of "rule of law".
At present, the demand for fitness among citizens is becoming increasingly strong. In order to meet various fitness needs and promote the deep integration of national fitness and health, Shanghai will, based on the integration of sports, health, and elderly care, refer to the experience of provinces and cities such as Tianjin and Zhejiang, and encourage qualified medical and health institutions to explore the establishment of characteristic clinics related to scientific fitness. At the same time, solving the problem of compatibility and utilization of non sports spaces at present, summarizing successful case experiences such as Xujiahui rooftop football field and Changning District Central Elevated Flamingo Sports Park, solving the legitimacy problem of using golden corner and silver edge spaces such as elevated bridges, rooftop spaces, and idle land to configure fitness facilities, and further improving the fitness experience of citizens.
It is reported that the Shanghai Sports Development Regulations also address the issue of supervision and management of prepaid business activities, which is strongly advocated by the public. The investigation by the Municipal Sports Bureau found that in recent years, the complaints related to prepaid fees in the sports and fitness industry on the "12345" citizen service hotline in this city have been concentrated in areas such as "normal operation cannot refund cards", "card refund but high transaction fees", and "operators closing stores cannot redeem or refund cards". Among them, there are fewer complaints about short-term cards, while complaints about long-term cards and ultra long term cards are concentrated. In this regard, this legislation has made more detailed provisions based on relevant international and domestic management experience, in order to better protect consumer rights.
Shanghai's transition from an international sports powerhouse to a globally renowned sports city cannot be achieved without the support of relevant laws. We need to accelerate the improvement of sports related regulations and institutional innovation in Shanghai, conscientiously carry out comprehensive local legislation research in the field of sports, and better use the rule of law to solve key and difficult issues of concern to the public.
Chen Jing, Deputy Director of the Standing Committee of the Municipal People's Congress, participated in legislative research.