Greater Manchester is set to strengthen its ties with Ireland later this month thanks to a joint trade mission with Liverpool City Region officials.

The trade mission will be led by Metro Mayor Andy Burnham alongside Liverpool’s Steve Rotherham with a delegation of 15 Greater Manchester and Merseyside business leaders.

Together, they will meet Tánaiste Leo Varadkar and Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney, along with members of the British Irish Chamber of Commerce.

Mr Burnham said: “The ties that bind the island of Ireland and the North West are deeply embedded in our communities and our places.

“This visit will be all about taking that relationship forward, and looking at those shared priority areas, like climate action, digital innovation, and culture and sport, where we can work more closely together for the benefit of our people and our economies.”

“Greater Manchester is a global city-region, and we recognise that many of the challenges that we face are global in scale.

“We have always sought to cooperate with our friends and partners around the world, and as the UK enters into new trading relationships we are determined to put the North West on the front foot to take advantage of those opportunities.”

The visit will take place on March 28 and 29.