Manchester City staff invited on government trade trip to India

Exclusive: Greater Manchester mayor Bev Craig invited City representative on trade trip organised by business secretary

A club representative from Manchester City was invited on a government-backed trade delegation to India this week, despite the club being found guilty of 114 breaches of Premier League rules.

She defended the decision to invite City even as the prime minister came under fire for his own contacts with the club, telling the Guardian it had played a vital role in helping build infrastructure in her city.

“I think what can also be true at the same time though, if you ask residents in east Manchester, have they benefited from a new library, a new leisure centre, a new sixth-form college, infrastructure investment, the job opportunities that come from them being a good employment charter signee and an early adopter of the real living wage – then they will have felt that benefit.”

The revelation comes as Burnham faced pressure over his relationship with City’s owners during his time as mayor of Greater Manchester. The prime minister was forced to clarify on Wednesday that he had two additional dinners with the club chair, Khaldoon al-Mubarak, at the Etihad Stadium, having previously declared those only as matchday hospitality.

Craig’s defence of the club came as her mayoral authority published details of Burnham’s contacts with City officials when he was mayor.

But the Sun newspaper revealed later on Monday that Burnham had twice attended a pre-match dinner with the chair, which was declared in now-deleted council paperwork. No 10 said it was routine for the records to be deleted when a new mayor was in place.

Burnham’s initial response to the findings against City had drawn criticism after he said he would be “really concerned” if its Abu Dhabi owners sold the club in the wake of the Premier League findings, calling them a “huge partner in the building of modern Manchester”.

City attended the trade delegation alongside several other northern sports and leisure organisations, including Lancashire cricket club and Visit Lake District. While in India, the football club took part in an event in Delhi promoting British tourism.

The Greater Manchester mayoral authority said on Tuesday that representatives of Greater Manchester sporting clubs would “routinely join business delegations” on international visits during Burnham’s time as mayor.

Other senior politicians on this week’s trade delegation include Jonathan Reynolds, the business secretary, Douglas Alexander, the Scotland secretary, and Angela Eagle, the environment secretary.

“The brand of the Premier League – one of the UK’s most important brands … that is incredibly powerful,” he said.