Exempt golf courses from the list of venues required to close due to Covid-19
The Parliament petitions site records 257,267 signatures for this petition, which closed on 1 November 2020. The Government responded on 23 November 2020. MPs debated it in Westminster Hall on 23 November 2020.
The petition
The petition's creator is not named in the Petitions site's published record. Quoted in full from the UK Parliament petitions site.
Exempt golf courses from the list of venues required to close due to Covid-19
Isolation essential to the Government’s strategy for fighting coronavirus, and UK citizens must remain healthy and exercise whilst keeping adequate distance between people. The Government should allow golf courses to open so families or individuals can play golf in order to exercise safely.
This could be achieved on golf courses, whether families or individuals are playing rounds. On the course everyone can keep a safe distance from each other. Let's make use of the space and the open air. Golf can help people stay healthy and happy whilst observing social distancing rules.
The Government's response
The Government published its response on 23 November 2020. Its summary:
People can leave their homes to exercise outdoors, with their household or with one person from another household or support bubble. Grassroots sports will return as soon as it is safe to do so.
The response in full:
Sport and physical activity including golf are incredibly important for our physical and mental health, and are a vital weapon against coronavirus. Golf also has great reach across society as people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities can take part in the game, it brings people together to experience the outdoors and protect nature.
Nobody wanted to be in the position of having to introduce further National Restrictions. However, as the Prime Minister said, with the virus spreading faster than expected we cannot allow our health system to be overwhelmed. Therefore, from Thursday 5 November until Wednesday 2 December indoor and outdoor leisure including golf courses will need to close. The National Restrictions are designed to get the R rate under control through limiting social contact and reducing transmissions.
In order for these measures to have the greatest impact, we will all need to sacrifice doing some things that we would otherwise like to do, for a short period of time. As soon as we're in a position to start lifting restrictions, grassroots sports will be one of the first to return.
People are still allowed to leave their homes for exercise and recreation outdoors, with their household or on their own, or with one person from another household or support bubble. DCMS and Sport England will continue to work with National Governing Bodies to allow the safe return of all sports as an immediate priority after the national measures have been relaxed.
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
Where the signatures came from
Signatures came from 649 constituencies on the boundaries used until the 2024 general election. The largest number, 1,737, came from Esher and Walton.
256,932 of the signatures were from the UK and 335 from elsewhere, by the location signers gave.
| Constituency | Signatures |
|---|---|
| Esher and Walton | 1,737 |
| Epsom and Ewell | 1,449 |
| Beaconsfield | 1,370 |
| Chesham and Amersham | 1,355 |
| South West Hertfordshire | 1,335 |
| Maidenhead | 1,312 |
| Mole Valley | 1,300 |
| Richmond Park | 1,292 |
| Windsor | 1,228 |
| Surrey Heath | 1,203 |
| Region | Signatures |
|---|---|
| South East | 58,731 |
| East of England | 33,231 |
| North West | 31,545 |
| London | 27,019 |
| South West | 24,021 |
| West Midlands | 20,406 |
| East Midlands | 19,832 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 19,585 |
| North East | 9,376 |
| Scotland | 3,580 |
| Wales | 1,623 |
| Northern Ireland | 384 |
Debate in Parliament
MPs debated the petition in Westminster Hall on 23 November 2020. Read the debate in Hansard. House of Commons Library debate pack.
Source and receipt
- https://petition.parliament.uk/archived/petitions/309851.jsonUK Parliament Petitions API · read 2026-10-15 · SHA-256
1836e68aa8fb5230… - The petition on petition.parliament.uk
The petition's words are its creator's and the response is the Government's; this site quotes both and gives no view on either. Signature counts can still change while a petition is open. To report an error, send a correction request.