Andy Burnham's Two Man City Dinners Deleted from Register

Andy Burnham Had Two Hospitality Dinners with Manchester City Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak, Deleted Records Show

Andy Burnham, former Mayor of Greater Manchester, had two hospitality dinners with Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak at matches in 2017 and 2018, it has emerged. The dinners were not detailed in a statement released on Monday by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) about his meetings with the club. Burnham is under pressure to clarify his discussions with Man City after the club was found guilty of breaching Premier League financial rules.

Who: Andy Burnham, former Mayor of Greater Manchester, and Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak
What: Two hospitality dinners at Manchester City matches in 2017 and 2018, valued at £300 and £699
When: August 2017 and April 2018
Where: Etihad Stadium
Why it matters: Records were removed from GMCA website; Burnham faces calls for transparency after Man City's Premier League rule breaches

What was said

"I've been asked by the leader of the opposition to publish details of my meetings, which I'm happy to do and I'm going to. I will quite clearly put out there everything that I have done working with them in my previous role as Mayor of Greater Manchester. None of it is recent, actually, in terms of the meetings I had. I only had one significant meeting, actually, and that was in 2021."
— Andy Burnham, on the Rest Is Politics podcast last week

"Andy Burnham promised the country and House of Commons full transparency on his dealings with Manchester City. This was essential after his inappropriate intervention into football."
— Louie French, Conservative shadow sports minister

Burnham's claim of "one significant meeting" in 2021 is contradicted by the newly revealed dinners in 2017 and 2018. The GMCA statement on Monday mentioned a formal meeting in October 2021 at the UK Government's Global Investment Summit, arranged by the Department for International Trade, and an informal meeting "in the stands" at Vincent Kompany's testimonial in 2019. It also said Burnham was a guest of Manchester City at home matches on a small number of occasions but did not specify the two hospitality dinners.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has demanded that No 10 release all details of meetings between the prime minister and senior figures at the club. Downing Street has defended the two dinners, saying they were hospitality received at home games that had been declared, rather than separate meetings with the club chairman. Political pressure on Burnham continues to mount.

The numbers

August 2017: Dinner with Richard Leese and Chair of Man City at Everton match, hospitality valued at £300
April 2018: Dinner with the Chairman at Man City/Man Utd derby, valued at approximately £699
May 2018: £150 pair of tickets to see Ed Sheeran perform at the stadium
October 2021: Formal meeting with Al Mubarak at UK Government's Global Investment Summit
2019: Informal meeting in the stands at Vincent Kompany testimonial
Nine-year period (2009-2018): Man City found guilty of breaching Premier League financial regulations, funnelling more than £830m into football operations via "sham" contracts

Why Burnham's deleted dinners matter for Manchester City's appeal

Andy Burnham's public intervention into Manchester City's ownership situation last month, when he said he would be "really concerned" if the club's owners sold up, has intensified scrutiny of his relationship with the club. The revelation that two hospitality dinners with Khaldoon Al Mubarak were removed from the GMCA register raises questions about transparency at a time when Manchester City is appealing against a guilty verdict for breaching Premier League financial regulations.

The club was found guilty by an independent commission of creating "sham" contracts with commercial partners to secretly funnel more than £830m into their football operations between 2009 and 2018. Sanctions are yet to be announced and City, which denies any wrongdoing, has lodged an appeal. Burnham's comments and his undisclosed meetings could be used by critics to argue that political figures are too close to the club.

The GMCA has said it is the authority's policy to only publish entries from the current mayoral term, but its website has entries dating back to 2022, despite the current term beginning in 2024. The BBC has asked GMCA for more details about this policy and why the two dinners were not specifically mentioned in Monday's statement. The deletions, first reported by The Sun, add to the pressure on Burnham to provide a full account of his dealings with Manchester City.

Talking points

Should Andy Burnham have declared the two hospitality dinners in the GMCA statement on Monday, or was the general mention of being a guest at home matches sufficient?
Does the deletion of the register entries undermine public trust in politicians' transparency, especially given Manchester City's ongoing appeal against financial rule breaches?
Kemi Badenoch's demand for No 10 to release all details of meetings between the prime minister and Manchester City figures suggests this is now a national political issue, not just a local one.
Without specifying what was discussed at the dinners, can the public ever know whether Burnham's later comments about Manchester City's owners were influenced by his relationship with Khaldoon Al Mubarak?

What happens next

The GMCA is expected to respond to the BBC's request for more details about its policy on publishing declaration entries and why the two dinners were omitted from Monday's statement. Manchester City's appeal against the guilty verdict for breaching Premier League financial regulations remains ongoing, with sanctions yet to be announced. Andy Burnham has committed to publishing details of all his meetings with Manchester City during his time as mayor. Political pressure from Conservative figures, including Louie French and Kemi Badenoch, is likely to continue until full transparency is achieved.

Frequently asked questions

How many hospitality dinners did Andy Burnham have with Manchester City's chairman?

Andy Burnham had two hospitality dinners with Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak, one in August 2017 and another in April 2018.

Why were the records of Andy Burnham's dinners with Manchester City deleted?

The Greater Manchester Combined Authority says it is its policy to only publish entries from the current mayoral term, though its website still has entries dating back to 2022.

What did Andy Burnham say about his meetings with Manchester City?

Burnham said he had "only one significant meeting" with Manchester City, in 2021, but the deleted records show two further hospitality dinners with the chairman in 2017 and 2018.