A LEADING Tory councillor says the lines between personal and private have been “blurred” after photographs emerged of the Lord Mayor of Bradford appearing to wear chains of office while on an unofficial visit to Pakistan.

Councillor Simon Cooke, (Con, Bingley Rural) said he had been made aware of an anonymous letter claiming Councillor Abid Hussain was on an “unofficial, personal trip to Pakistan” and that his actions in appearing there as Bradford’s Lord Mayor were a “disgrace.”

The letter asks where he got the replica chains from and why he was allowed to do this.

It continues by claiming that the pictures created the impression of an official Bradford Council visit to Pakistan, adding that Cllr Hussain appeared to be enjoying hospitality and being “treated well as a Bradford representative”.

The letter goes on to say other councillors accompanied Cllr Hussain on the trip.

In response to the letter, Cllr Cooke said he had approached Bradford Council’s solicitor to get an understanding of the situation and whether or not the Council should take any action.

He said: “My obvious concern is that the Lord Mayor is representing the city in Pakistan.

“I have no issue at all with official visits to Pakistan and I like Abid, but if this is a private visit, to try and turn a private visit into an official visit doesn’t look like the sort of thing (the Council) should be doing.

“The boundaries here are blurred. I have asked the solicitor whether the trip was privately funded, in which case it was not an official trip, and whether they knew he was taking chains with him to appear in an official capacity. There may have been chains made out of costume jewellery and assume that’s what these are. They don’t look like the official ones which have the crest in the middle.”

In response to the concerns, a Bradford Council spokesman said: “The visit is a personal one and the Lord Mayor does not require authorisation to visit Pakistan. He could not conduct official Council business during his visit, as his role is largely ceremonial. The chains were not those held by the Council and the visit was not funded by the Council.”

Meanwhile, Cllr Hussain said he funded the visit entirely from his own pocket. He has posted a number of pictures of the visit on his Facebook page. He said: “Obviously they have heard I am the Lord Mayor this year and want to come and congratulate me which is kind of them. I’m proud of Bradford and Keighley and will always speak positively about it wherever I am including on this visit but no one is paying me or tasking me to do anything whilst I am here.”

Cllr Cook said while it may not be an official visit, certain things had given the impression that it was and he said he hoped the Lord Mayor would act more carefully in the future.