January 2 – A Manchester MP has claimed that taxpayers should not have to pay anything towards the city hosting World Cup matches if England’s bid to stage the tournament in 2018 is successful.
Manchester City Council have estimated that it will have to set aside £25 and £30 million to cover the costs, the Manchester Evening News have claimed.
But it is a figure officials claimed will be dwarfed by the economic benefits of up to £100 million if Old Trafford and Eastlands are part of England 2018.
Graham Stringer, the MP for Blackley, however, has claimed that world governing body FIFA should pick up the bill.
He said: ”It’s ludicrous.
“The public sector should not have to pay anything.”
Stringer, the former Leader of Manchester City Council, who was heavily involved in Manchester’s failed bid to host the 2000 Olympics, had also opposed taxpayers having to fund £150,000 as part of the bid process to be selected as one of 12 host cities.
He said: ”I met the chief executive of the bid [Andy Anson] and told him it was completely and totally absurd.
“Asking the public sector to pay when they will make a fortune beggars belief.”
Stringer is supported by Matthew Elliott, from the TaxPayers Alliance, who claimed businesses, not taxpayers, should foot the bill.
He said: ”The main ones who benefit from these types of event tend to be businesses.
“So if the Council are to put together a viable plan they should approach local businesses to fund it.
“Council tax payers have seen their bills rise massively so residents and already struggling are not going to appreciate this.”
But Sir Richard Leese, the Leader of Manchester City Council, said that the investment would be comfortably worth it.
Manchester could stage up to 12 matches during the tournament, including a quarter-final and semi-final, if Old Trafford and Eastlands (pictured) are both chosen by FIFA.
Sir Richard said: ”If the World Cup does come to Manchester it will be a guaranteed win for the city.
“Analysis shows that when Munich hosted games in the 2006 World Cup some £80 million poured into its economy.
“We would expect the benefits here to be even greater, not least taking into account inflation and the fact that we would hope to host more games than Munich did.”
Richard Paver, the treasurer of Manchester City Council, said: ”It’s important to note that this prudent estimate of between £25 million and £30 million relates to the predicted overall costs to the city, including some related to both public and private partners, and not just the cost to the City Council.
“The overall cost will be offset as we would expect to be able to attract sponsorship, funding and make savings by drawing on our existing resources and those of our partners as well as working closely with other host cities.”
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