Andy Burnham accused of covering up Man City links after Sun probe finds he had two freebie dinners with club chairman

Next PM ANDY Burnham was accused of covering up his links to scandal-hit Manchester City after a Sun probe rubbished his claims he had only one “significant” meeting with its chairman. A deleted register of interests revealed that while Manchester’s mayor, he twice joined Khaldoon Al Mubarak at a luxury hospitality suite in the Etihad Stadium . 6 Andy Burnham with Manchester City Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak Credit: PA 6 Burnham was accused of covering up his links to scandal-hit Manchester City after a Sun probe rubbished his claims Credit: Alamy Advertisement The revelation uncovered by a Sun investigation comes days after the PM vowed to be transparent over his relationship with the club which has been found guilty by an independent panel of more than 100 Premier League rule breaches . In all he accepted City-funded freebies worth almost £1,200. Sign up for the Football newsletter Thank you! Email address Please provide a valid email. Your info will be used in accordance with our Privacy Policy You'll now receive top stories, breaking news, and more, straight to your email. These were logged on a register he signed on December 7 2020, but it was removed from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority’s website. Last night there were claims that Mr Burnham had misled the public about the extent of his dealings with City bosses. Read More on Sport ARSENAL 3 LILLE 0 Gunners score three in seven minutes to maintain perfect start in UCL BRAD SPENDING Liverpool slated over Barcola as World Cup winner says ace worth HALF his fee Reform MP Robert Jenrick said: “This whole saga stinks. “Burnham appears to have lied about his extensive links to Manchester City’s owners. No wonder he was so desperate to leap to their defence. Fans deserve better than a Prime Minister compromised by this scandal.” Shadow Sports Minister Louie French added: “This is far from the full transparency that football fans deserve. “We have been given precious little information about these meetings, what was discussed and what may have been agreed. Advertisement Most read in Sport FIGHTING SPIRIT British motorsport star, 33, diagnosed with cancer as he shares statement FOOTIE HORROR Ex-Liverpool player held at gunpoint in robbery at home hours before match BUTCHERED Martinez slams Man Utd over transfers but Rooney accuses him of 'disrespect' RAGING BULL England Rugby World Cup hero, 50, is unrecognisable in bodybuilding competition 6 A deleted register of interests revealed that while Manchester’s mayor, Burnham twice joined Khaldoon Al Mubarak at a luxury hospitality suite at the Etihad 6 Burnham dined with Sir Richard Leese and Mr Al Mubarak when the club played Everton in 2017, pictured Raheem Sterling celebrating during the game in 2017 Credit: AFP or licensors “If Burnham has nothing to hide, why is he so tight-lipped?” Mr Burnham had to backtrack after saying he would be “really concerned to lose” City’s Abu Dhabi owners. Sources in the United Arab Emirates had previously indicated that a particularly harsh City punishment could scupper £30billion of investment. Advertisement On Monday, the PM told the House of Commons that all his dealings with City’s owners would be published. Hours later, the GMCA released a statement on his behalf claiming he had been a guest at City home games “on a small number of occasions”. The authority admitted he had met Mr Al Mubarak “informally in the stands” at ex-captain Vincent Kompany’s testimonial in September 2019. But it said there had been only one “formal meeting” between the pair, at a government-organised investment summit in October 2021. Neither pre-match dinner was mentioned even though they were declared in council paperwork at the time. Advertisement 6 Burnham met Mr Al Mubarak ‘informally in the stands’ at ex-captain Vincent Kompany’s testimonial in September 2019 Credit: Getty – Contributor 6 A beaming Burnham at the 2019 charity night organised by Kompany at Manchester’s Hilton Hotel Credit: Eamonn and James Clarke On Sunday, Mr Burnham told The Rest Is Politics podcast: “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.” Yet in August 2017, the then-mayor dined with Manchester City Council leader Sir Richard Leese and Mr Al Mubarak when the club played his beloved Everton. Advertisement The hospitality was declared on his register of interests, valued at £338, and reported as provided by “Manchester City Football Club”. In April 2018, Mr Burnham was wined and dined by the chairman again at the Manchester derby. The meal and seat were valued at £699. A month after the derby, the club handed Mr Burnham two tickets worth £150 to see Ed Sheeran perform at the Etihad. In 2019, Mr Burnham was pictured arriving at a charity dinner organised by Kompany at Manchester’s Hilton Hotel, where City fan Noel Gallagher took the stage. Freebies from Mr Burnham’s second term as Mayor of Greater Manchester remain accessible online, but those from his first stint have been taken down. Advertisement ‘Andy was detached from Utd’ By Samuel Luckhurst , Man United correspondent ANDY Burnham showed his true colours when he attended a ­testimonial dinner for Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany in February 2019. The PM, a lifelong supporter of the royal blue of Everton, rubbed shoulders with players and their then boss Pep Guardiola in City’s domestic treble-winning season. Guardiola was accompanied by his wife at the Beetham Tower on Deansgate. Almost every City star was also there. Oasis star Noel Gallagher performed a set. Bez and Rowetta from the Happy Mondays rocked up. So did Ricky Hatton. Mr Burnham, in keeping with the occasion’s “Manchesterism”, arrived in a North Face anorak and kept it on while interviewed. The dinner, held at the tower’s Hilton Hotel, was to combat homelessness in the city through the Tackle4MCR initiative. Mr Burnham, the then mayor of Manchester, said in a speech: “We want this to be a place that catches people when they fall.” Nearly £250,000 was raised at the dinner. A testimonial match for former captain Kompany in September 2019 boosted Tackle4MCR’s funds even further. It was at that Etihad game that Mr Burnham was photographed cosying up to the City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak. The Hilton dinner featured in an episode of the four-part BBC documentary series Manctopia: Billion Pound Property Boom. Earlier this year, Mr Burnham bragged Manchester was “the fastest-growing city in the UK”. Until Sir Jim Ratcliffe returned to his home town with the intention of building a new 100,000-seater stadium for Manchester United, Mr Burnham was seen as attached to City and detached from United. The details of his two dinners were uncovered in a PDF submitted and signed by Mr Burnham in line with local authority rules in December 2020. The Sun was able to track down an archived version. Two months after the 2017 dinner, the GMCA approved a £24.5million loan to Manchester Life, a joint property venture between the city council and club owners the Abu Dhabi United Group. Sir Richard Leese was on the board. He is now an honorary president of the club after stepping down as council leader in December 2021. Three Manchester Life companies controlled by ADUG owner Sheikh Mansour received around £55.7million from the authority. Advertisement Manchester Life says the loans were repaid in full with interest. GMCA sources said all gifts had been declared at the time in line with its rules. Mr Al Mubarak met Mr Burnham’s Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds inside No10 in September, a fortnight before the rule breach verdicts became public. Last week The Sun revealed Labour politicians have pocketed nearly £300,000 in freebies from the UAE and Man City. We also revealed Mr Burnham joined City’s delegation at the opening of the club’s second office in China in 2018. Advertisement RECOMMENDED STORIES Manchester City have repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and are appealing the panel’s findings. No10 declined to comment.