Andy Burnham has been compared to Keir Starmer over his Manchester City meetings.
Andy Burnham has come under fire over his meetings with Manchester City bosses, after it emerged he met the club’s executives at least six times while serving as Greater Manchester mayor, despite previously referring to just one “significant” meeting with the club’s Abu Dhabi chiefs. Discussing the revelations on the Daily Expresso podcast, James Walker and JJ Anisiobi questioned Burnham’s transparency and compared the controversy to Sir Keir Starmer’s past claims about his record on prosecuting grooming gangs. James said: “What is really dodgy is saying you’ve had one meeting with a guy and now it’s come out you’ve had six and he stayed silent.”
He added: “This just stinks of Starmer, right? This absolutely stinks of Starmer.”
James warned the row could damage Burnham’s carefully cultivated public image, saying: “This feels a bit like the beginning of the end for Burnham.”
He continued: “A guy who’s made his reputation being like, ‘I’m the nicest mayor in the country. I’m so successful. I’ve got a squeaky clean record. I’m not like that Westminster lot, me.’
Get the latest politics news – straight from our team in Westminster and more
Invalid email
You agree you are 18 or over. We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. You can unsubscribe at any time. More Info.
“Well, you seem a little bit like you are.”
JJ also criticised the relationship, saying: “I think Burnham has become a little too close to Man City‘s billionaire owners.”
However, James acknowledged that meetings between politicians and major businesses were not unusual, arguing that they could help attract investment.
“Andy B is not the only person who’s ever done this, right?” he said, adding that politicians from both Labour and the Conservatives had held meetings with business leaders to secure investment.
Andy Burnham has come under scrutiny after it emerged he met Manchester City executives (Image: Getty)
The controversy follows reports that Burnham met Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak, chief executive Ferran Soriano and former chief operating officer Roel de Vries. A previously deleted register of interests reportedly showed he received hospitality from Al Mubarak on two occasions.
Burnham told MPs that his declaration of visits to the Etihad Stadium “on a small number of occasions” included two dinners with Al Mubarak. He has also said he did not discuss the Premier League investigation into Manchester City with the club’s owners.
The meetings have drawn renewed scrutiny because Manchester City is facing an independent process over alleged breaches of Premier League financial rules. The club has maintained its innocence and appealed against the findings.
The controversy has also raised questions about the potential economic impact of any punishment against the club. Sources in the United Arab Emirates have reportedly warned that severe sanctions could put billions of pounds of UK investment at risk.
Burnham has previously expressed concern about losing the club’s Abu Dhabi owners, citing their contribution to Manchester’s development. The club’s investment has been associated with regeneration and facilities in east Manchester.
Current Manchester mayor Bev Craig has also defended the distinction between the club’s alleged rule-breaking and the benefits its investment has brought to local communities.
“If a football club has broken the rules, a football club should be punished for breaking the rules,” she said.
She added that residents had benefited from developments including “a new library, a new leisure centre, a new sixth-form college”.
A leading champion of family businesses brands the Government’s EU push a ‘weapon of distraction’ to cover Labour’s lack of leadership and economic growth
Andy Burnham has been warned against pushing the UK back into the EU (Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Britain faces “economic disaster” and the death of the family business if Labour continues to pursue “anti-growth” policies, the chairman of the Independent Business Network (IBN) has warned. John Longworth, writing in a Budget submission, urges a radical change of course and makes the case that rejoining the European Union – a long-term possibility floated by Andy Burnham – would be “insanity”.
In a damning assessment of Labour’s record in power, he said: “There appears to be a blind attachment in the corridors of power to tax and spend, and to ideological policies such as net zero, the direct attack on property ownership and inheritance, and welfare profligacy. A continuation of this approach risks economic disaster and the demise of family businesses. Rather than address the real issues of government policy and the economy, the Prime Minister has chosen instead to pursue rejoining the European Union, raising false hope that this would solve Britain’s problems. It would introduce years of uncertainty and conflict. Quite apart from the enormous cost of such a policy, tying the UK to a failing economic model would be most unlikely to boost our fortunes. It is such insanity that the only rational explanation is that it is a ‘weapon of distraction’, designed to divert attention from the absence of both leadership and economic growth that besets our government.”
The IBN is calling for a reversal of the hike in employers’ National Insurance introduced by then-Chancellor Rachel Reeves as well as the preservation of zero hours contracts. It states in its submission to the Treasury: “For family businesses, flexible hiring can create an entry point into employment. A restaurant owner who needs help on busy weekends may be willing to train an inexperienced local applicant for a small number of shifts. If trade grows, that person may gain more hours and eventually move into a regular role.”
John Longworth is a former director-general of the British Chambers of Commerce (Image: Jonathan Buckmaster)
Alongside VAT reforms, it is calling for loans for young entrepreneurs. “Britain should give young people a fair chance to turn skill and initiative into a business, whether or not their families can write the first cheque,” the IBN states.
Brendan Chilton, the organisation’s chief executive, said: “We believe that family-owned and family-run businesses must have a greater voice in public policy and can thrive outside the EU. One of the primary reasons for leaving the European Union was to ensure that we had the ability to create the most dynamic and competitive environment for businesses and start-ups. We also left the European Union so that we could embark on our own trade deals, securing advantages for British businesses, access to new markets and flexibility to help with the cost of living. We must not reverse that decision, and the Independent Business Network will fight for our sovereignty and for maintaining our independence outside the EU.”