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FOI - Africa Trade Visit [Aug 2025]

Key information

Request reference number: MGLA180725-0309

Date of response:

Summary of request

Request:

Under the freedom of information act, I would like to request:

Who paid for the flights to africa?

What staff went and what was their paybracket?

How much did the flights there, and back, and internally, cost?

What class were the flights?

Response:

1. All flights were paid for by the Greater London Authority (GLA)

 

2. The Mayor was accompanied by the following staff:

To Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa:

  • Ali Picton, Assistant Chief of Staff and Mayoral Director, Operations
  • Nadeem Javaid MBE, Mayoral Director, Global Relations and Communities
  • Mayoral Head of News
  • Senior Advisor to the Mayor, Public Affairs
  • Photographer
  • Senior Video Producer Director/Manager
  • Head of Media
  • Head of International Relations
  • Principal International Relations Officer

To Nigeria and Ghana only:

  • Senior Advisor to the Mayor, Operations

To South Africa only:

  • Felicity Appleby, Assistant Chief of Staff and Mayoral Director, Government, Political and Strategic Engagement
  • Head of External Operations and Strategic Planning

The salaries of those staff directly appointed by the Mayor can be found at https://www.london.gov.uk/who-we-are/what-mayor-does/mayor-and-his-team  

The salary grade of other staff is as follows:

  • Mayoral Head of News – Grade 14
  • Senior Advisor to the Mayor, Public Affairs – Grade 12
  • Senior Advisor to the Mayor, Operations – Grade 12
  • Head of External Operations and Strategic Planning - Grade 14
  • Head of Media – Grade 13
  • Head of International Relations – Grade 12
  • Principal International Relations Officer – Grade 10
  • Senior Video Producer Director/Manager - Grade 9
  • Photographer – Grade 8

 

3. We do not yet hold the final costs, once these have been reconciled we will publish them on our Disclosure Log against your FOI case reference (MGLA180725-0309) at: FOI disclosure log | London City Hall Update: See attached document

 

4. Members and staff of the Greater London Authority (GLA) are expected to book travel in accordance with the GLA’s Expenses and Benefits Framework*

The class of travel used by the Mayor’s delegation was as follows:

  • London to Lagos (6h 35m): Premium Economy
  • Lagos to Accra (1hr 05m): Economy
  • Accra to Johannesburg (Overnight flight, 5h 55m): Business
  • Johannesburg to Cape Town (2h 20m): Economy
  • Cape Town to London (Overnight flight, 11h 40m): Business

*Salaries, expenses, benefits and workforce information | London City Hall

 

Related documents

Mayor of London - Trade Visit to Africa - Disclosure Log

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