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.
Andy Burnham’s successor as Manchester mayor Bev Craig took a representative from the club to Delhi and Mumbai on a trip organised by business secretary Jonathan Reynolds, where she and other northern mayors have been promoting British trade and tourism.
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.
“If a football club has broken the rules, a football club should be punished for breaking the rules, and that is pretty clear in an independent process,” she said.
“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.”
City, which says it is innocent of the charges and has appealed against them, declined to comment.
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.
Speaking at PMQs, Burnham said no one from the club had raised the Premier League charges with him.
Craig’s defence of the club came as her mayoral authority published details of Burnham’s contacts with City officials when he was mayor.
The release showed the prime minister had attended a formal meeting with al-Mubarak, chatted to him in the stands at a player’s testimonial game and was accompanied by staff from the club on official overseas visits.
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”.
As the prime minister came under fire for his comments, Downing Street clarified that he believed where wrongdoing had been established, those responsible should face the consequences.
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 Great North – a coalition of mayors from the north of England which organised the India event – said its aim was “to shine a spotlight on the great tourism products across the north of England”.
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.
Burnham’s defence of City and its owners has focused attention not only on his links to the club but on how reliant he was on investment from Abu Dhabi to power Manchester’s strong growth rates when he was 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.
Reynolds took part in a Premier League event on Tuesday, where he met schoolchildren being taught by British-trained coaches. He denied afterwards that the charges against City had tainted the league’s reputation. It is otherwise one of Britain’s most successful cultural exports.
“The brand of the Premier League – one of the UK’s most important brands … that is incredibly powerful,” he said.
Asked whether it was appropriate for City to have been invited, given the charges it faced, he said: “That’s a Greater Manchester issue, and obviously they are a major participant in the economy in Greater Manchester.
“I understand the interest – the relationship between Manchester and Manchester City – but in terms of the allegations, their appeal, that is a football matter.”
