Having previously been known simply as ‘that footy pundit off the telly’, over the past year Gary Neville seems to have been trying to manoeuvre his way into politics. The former Man Utd captain signed up as a Labour member, conducted a cringeworthy Q&A with Keir Starmer at last year’s party conference, and has consistently called for the Tories to be removed from office. But is Neville a true comrade of the workers’ movement? Mr S thought he’d do some digging into the right back’s past…

Qatari hypocrisy

Having been a consistent critic of the Qatari government, their human rights’ abuses and stance on gay rights, Neville then, er, became a fully paid-up member of Qatari state media by agreeing to be a pundit at the 2022 World Cup for beIN Sports.

BeIN is owned by the Qataris, but Neville was front and centre of their coverage throughout the tournament, for which he was paid substantial amounts of money. He had said he ‘detests’ Qatar’s abuses, and even fronted a documentary to that end. But Neville defended his decision to appear o the channel by saying he hoped to ‘highlight the issues and challenges’ from within the country. Quelle surprise…

Saudi sophistry

Despite his Qatari links, Neville has some strong views on Saudi Arabia and its habit of buying up millionaire footballers in their thirties. The one-time England right back has called on the Premier League to stop the transfer of players to the oil rich nation until ‘it is certain the integrity of its competition is not being put at risk’.

That was after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund declared in June that it was taking over four leading clubs in the country, including Al-Nassr, who signed Cristiano Ronaldo in December. He told the BBC that: ‘The Premier League should put an instant embargo on transfers to Saudi Arabia to ensure the integrity of the game isn’t being damaged. Checks should be made on the appropriateness of the transactions.’

This is despite Neville claiming that he would ‘find it difficult’ to oppose a Qatari-led takeover of Manchester United. Is there really such a difference between the Saudis and the Qataris? Other than the fact one that pays Neville and the other doesn’t…

The St Michael’s project

For someone who presents himself as a man of the people, Neville’s immense wealth is sometimes overlooked. One of his recent entrepreneurial schemes has been his so-called St. Michael’s project, which is in the process of constructing massive tower blocks in the centre of Manchester.

Is this, perchance, Gary building affordable housing as the good Labour man he claims to be? No, instead these will be luxury apartments and a five-star hotel, with Neville expressing disgust that a city as great as Manchester ‘only has one’.

Although the plans are going ahead, locals are still angry. The scheme attracted controversy over plans – now dropped – to knock down an historic pub, the Sir Ralph Abercromby, one of the last remaining structures from the time of the Peterloo massacre. Neville later said he ‘regretted’ the decision. Talk about crocodile tears…

Speeding shenanigans

Last year Neville was forced to admit that he had been banned from driving after collecting 12 points on his driving licence. In 2017, the Sky Sports pundit was slammed by road safety campaigners for ‘putting lives at risk’ by holding a mobile phone at the wheel.

Neville was pictured with the phone in his hand on the M60 in Salford, just days after the number of points and fine for calling or texting while driving doubled. Only months earlier, he had been pictured holding his phone at the wheel of his BMW in Manchester.

Yet despite this, Neville showed little compunction on opining on Boris Johnson, Partygate and the dreadful fate that ought to befall lawbreakers…

Low wages

Neville came under fire in December when it emerged his five-star Stock Exchange Hotel, was advertising for waiters and waitresses on a salary of £9.50 an hour. That was to work in a restaurant where bottles of wine cost up to £5,900 and steaks were priced at £49.50.

The revelation followed a series of attacks against the government in which Neville blasted Tory ministers for paying NHS nurses ‘a pittance’ – comparing their treatment to the Qatari regime’s approach to migrant workers, some of whom died building stadiums at last year’s controversial World Cup.

Well, he’d know all about that, eh Gary?