UK PM Burnham promises to release details of Man City meetings

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has defended his comments on Manchester City’s guilty verdict over breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules, insisting the allegations against the club should be separated from its investment in Greater Manchester, Punch reports.

Burnham also promised to publish details of his meetings with senior City officials after questions about his relationship with the club’s Abu Dhabi owners. Speaking on The Rest Is Politics podcast on Saturday, he said he was willing to do so following a demand from Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch.

“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,” he said.

He had faced criticism after saying he would be “really concerned” if City’s owners decided to sell the club following the verdict. Defending his position, he said his mind had been on the Labour Party conference at the time.

“I don’t think I misspoke,” he said.

He added: “The football issues are different from the investment issues. People will try and conflate those two things, but they shouldn’t, in my view.”

Burnham nonetheless acknowledged the seriousness of the findings, saying they were “serious, as I said in the interview.”

An independent commission found City guilty of multiple breaches covering 2009 to 2018, and said the club used “sham” commercial contracts to secretly channel more than £830 million into football operations. The club denies wrongdoing and has appealed. Sanctions are yet to be announced.