We are constantly being told that the British have more than ever before become a nation of couch potatoes and unfit fatties. Blame for this is usually laid at a reduction in sport in schools and the fact that the seeds of a sedentary life are often sown early.

Hours spent in front of a television set or playing computer games are not the best recipe for creating the healthy, fit community we should be aspiring to, let alone for producing the sporting stars of tomorrow.

So initiatives like the sports action zone are extremely important if Bradford's sports teams of the future are to stand a chance of being filled with home-grown talent. It's vital, in this context, that an organisation like Sport England is participating fully in efforts to get our local population, especially children, swinging into action.

The visit of that body's chairman, former England soccer star Trevor Brooking, to the city is - as Bradford South MP Gerry Sutcliffe says - a welcome opportunity to establish and improve links and increase support both locally and nationally for efforts to develop sport throughout the Bradford district.

Hopefully, this co-operation will come up with some scheme to avoid the closure of sports centres such as Scholemoor and Eccleshill which have been allowed to fall into a sorry state of disrepair for a lack of available cash to bring them up to standard.

Let's hope that it can result in ways of finding more funding to put Bradford's existing facilities back in order as well as develop new ones for the future.