The DCMS has dismissed claims made in The Times newspaper today that schools will be instructed by the government to double the amount of time allocated to PE and sport.

A spokesperson for the DCMS told Leisure Opportunities that the newspaper’s claims were “speculative”, adding that although the government had “committed itself to an ambitious sport programme”, the details had not yet been confirmed.

The newspaper said that children’s entitlement to PE and sport will be doubled – from two hours to four hours a week – although it does not state when this new requirement will be implemented.

The current government target is that 75 per cent of children should be accessing two hours of PE and sport a week by 2006 and 85 per cent by 2008, with the drive to these levels being led by the creation of School Sports Partnerships – 400 ‘families’ of secondary and primary feeder schools across the country.

The Times said that the announcement – which is due early next month – is regarded in Whitehall as a key part of Labour’s election manifesto – with the aim of attacking children’s health issues such as obesity and diabetes.

The ambitious proposal has been met – The Times reports – with a high degree of scepticism by teaching unions who claim they have not been consulted on the viability of such a move.

Sources at the Youth Sport Trust – the agency leading the School Sports Partnership scheme – said this morning that claims made by the newspaper saying that the programme was “far off target” were inaccurate and that it was still on course to reach the 75 per cent benchmark by 2006.