The potential Labour leadership challenger has been accused of ‘hypocrisy’ as it emerged he had received thousands of pounds in gifts.
The Manchester Mayor has received around £17k in gifts (Image: Getty)
Labour leadership hopeful Andy Burnham claimed more than £17,000 in gifts during his time as Manchester Mayor. According to the Sun, the Makerfield by-election candidate, who has sought to foster a public image portraying him as a man of the people, accepted free tickets, gifts, and payments for speeches during his tenure as mayor.
In addition to his £118,267-a-year salary, the former Labour cabinet member received tickets or hospitality worth a total of £17,059 over 17 occasions between June 2024 and March 2026. The figure includes a £5,000 trip to the Euro 2024 finals for Burnham, who speaks regularly about his passion for football and support for Everton. The declared interests also show paid speaking engagements, including £1,000 for an appearance at the faith-based Theos lecture, which he subsequently donated to charity.
Burnham at a recent Everton game (Image: Getty)
It comes as it was revealed that the Manchester Mayor has been renting out a London flat worth £480,000.
Burnham has spoken often about the difficulties faced by young people attempting to get a foothold on the housing ladder, a problem driven in part by an extortionate rental market and a lack of affordable housing hindered by the prevalence of second homes.
The potential future prime minister bought the property in Kennington in 2005 for around half of its current value.
He was criticised in 2015 when it emerged that he had, in line with guidelines at the time, claimed £1,449.98 a month from July 2012 to rent another London property close to the property he owned.
The revelations have drawn accusations of hypocrisy by Kevin Hollinrake, the Conservative Party chairman, who accused Burnham of previously using taxpayers’ cash to pay the interest on his mortgage, prior to a rule change in the wake of the expenses scandal.
Mr Hollinrake told the Daily Mail: “The self-styled King of the North, it turns out, has kept a rather comfortable foothold south of the river.
“Bought thanks to expenses, doubled in value, rented out for profit – despite cries of unfairness against the landlord class he is a part of. There is a certain whiff of hypocrisy.”
