Colchester MP Bob Russell has launched a motion in the House of Commons to curb the "parasitic" powers of agents within professional football.

Russell's two-day parliamentary motion - Behaviour of football agents - comes just a week after This Is Essex ran a story in which Colchester United manager Steve Whitton threw his weight behind a Reading bid to ban players' agents.

The motion, which already has strong cross-party support, was being discussed in the Commonson Wednesday and Thursday - ironically the day the Brian Launders appeal involving agent Barry Silkman was expected to be decided by a Football League tribunal in London.

Former U's midfielder Launders is seeking around £100,000 in lost wages following his sacking by the club in October for gross misconduct.

Russell, the Liberal Democrat spokesman for sport, said yesterday (Thursday): "I back Steve Whitton's stance on agents all the way.

"This problem goes back a long way and his words crystalised what many people think about the involvement of agents in the game."

In his strongly-worded motion, Russell, who is trying to raise the profile of sport on the political agenda, claims: "The parasitic actions of agents are sucking money from clubs and are therefore threatening the future of the game, especially at the lower end of the Football League."

He said: "My motion is worded very strongly and it focuses on the problem of agents in the League.

"In my view they are parasites. They are taking money out of the game which would otherwise be circulated within. Their activities should be restricted to non-footballing matters as Whitton said - boot and clothing endorsments outside the game.

Russell's motion states: "That this House views the growing involvement of agents for professional footballers, particularly those in the lower leagues, as being detrimental to the long-term interests of the game.

"It notes that the parasitic actions of agents are sucking money from clubs and thus threaten their future.

"The House congratulates some clubs, notably in the lower divisions, on the lead being taken in seeking to resists the demands made by agents and calls on the Government to urge football authorities to institute a code of practice to limit the activities of agents to the non-footballing interests of their clients and thus end the loss of money from the game which such parasites cause."

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