YOUNGSTERS without a father-figure should live life like Gary Neville to stay out of trouble, the Tory “shadow minister for Liverpool” said yesterday.
Chris Grayling heaped praise on the Manchester United captain as a “good role model”, when he described his ideas to tackle gangs and knife crime to MPs.
The choice will be greeted with disbelief by Liverpool football fans due to Neville’s long history of “hating” the club.
The defender once told a United fanzine: “I can't stand Liverpool, I can't stand Liverpool people, I can't stand anything to do with them.”
But Mr Grayling picked out Neville as he lamented the “absence of male role models” for many troubled young men.
The Shadow Home Secretary told the home affairs committee: “I have spent time on the streets of Toxteth with some very good youth workers, who told me that kids are growing up without any parental guidance at home.”
Mr Grayling singled out Joey Barton as exactly the wrong type of role model for young people.
“If I was to pick out a good role model, it would be Gary Neville, an estimable professional over a long period of time.”
