Call for Liverpool and Manchester to consider joint bid for 2040 Olympic and Paralympic Games

Local TV

Journalist Liam Fogarty argues that a shared Olympic and Paralympic bid could strengthen regional collaboration, drive regeneration and reshape how the North of England is seen both nationally and internationally.

Transcript

00:00A joint Liverpool-Manchester bid to host the 2040 Olympics and Paralympics

00:05is being discussed by leaders across the region

00:07who say it could bring major investment and help address a long-running north-south divide.

00:12The idea began with a proposal from the Hesseltine Institute in Liverpool

00:15and is now gaining political momentum across both cities

00:18with senior figures sharing their views on how such a bid might work.

00:22I mean, it'd bring more money in for the two cities and surrounding areas.

00:27So yeah, I think it'd be a good thing.

00:29Amazing. Absolutely. That'd be fantastic.

00:32When we had the Eurovision here, the atmosphere was fabulous.

00:38The politicians seem very little interested in what's happening in the north,

00:42as if we didn't exist at all.

00:44Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, has described the proposal as a good idea

00:48and said the two cities should bid rather than London,

00:51where Mayor Sadiq Khan has expressed interest in hosting again after the success of 2012.

00:56Mr Burnham said the country could not give London a second Olympics

01:00and Hickson argued that if government wants to rebalance the country,

01:03backing Liverpool and Manchester could be the way to do it.

01:07We know that this country is totally out of sync, out of balance.

01:11Everything has to be in the London area.

01:15It's a different country.

01:16Liverpool's council leader, Liam Robinson, called the idea exciting

01:20and said he would want Liverpool to be at the very forefront if the bid progressed,

01:24pointing to the city's recent international experience with Eurovision and Capital of Culture.

01:29Both Liverpool and Manchester acknowledged that major transport upgrades

01:34would be needed to handle the number of international fans and Olympic springs.

01:38The public transport in London is fantastic, but here, where I live,

01:45which is only on the fringes of Birkinhead, it's one bus per hour, none on Sundays.

01:52When most of us picture the Olympic Games, we see a global event that transforms an entire region,

01:56and that's exactly what journalist and lecturer Liam Fogarty believes could happen here in the North West.

02:01The former mayoral candidate points to the impact previous Games have had.

02:06He highlights that while some host cities, including Montreal in 1976 and Athens in 2004,

02:13were left struggling with debt, others, such as Barcelona in 1992, London in 2012,

02:19and Paris in 2024, used Olympic status to drive investment and long-term regeneration.

02:24He argues Liverpool and Manchester already have strong foundations.

02:27Both cities have made global contributions through commerce, industry, science and popular culture,

02:33and both have proven experience staging world-class sporting events, including major boxing championships.

02:39If they spend too much beyond the budgets on everything, then, yeah, it would concern me all.

02:45But I think the boost to the economy in the shops would be a lot.

02:49This masterplan imagines every Borat in both city regions hosting events,

02:53with an equitable spread of venues and the potential to stage opening and closing ceremonies across both cities.

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