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Crucial save: MP John Leech says council should sell Eastlands to Manchester City
Town hall chiefs should sell off Manchester City’s ground to reduce the need for cuts, an MP has claimed.
John Leech – a lifelong Blues fan and Lib Dem MP for Withington – said the council could raise huge sums by inviting a bid from City owner Sheikh Mansour. Mr Leech said selling the City of Manchester Stadium would provide a way of covering the cost of cuts ‘over the next few years’.
He said: "I think it would make significantly more than the council receive in rent from City."
The stadium, built for the Commonwealth Games in 2002, is currently leased to the club in a deal worth £3m a year to the council.
Experts believe the council could sell the ground for as much as £200m.
The council's Labour leadership rejected Mr Leech's suggestion last night as a ‘quick not-quite fix’. Finance spokesman Bernard Priest said yearly income from the ground was more valuable than a one-off lump sum.
Kevin Parker, MCFC Supporters Club general secretary, said: "If the club owned the stadium we would have more control over how it was run. If that money could be used by the council to protect jobs then it’s a win-win situation.