Andy Burnham issues new statement and orders 'manual trawl' to uncover Man City documents

Andy Burnham says he has asked for a 'manual trawl' of records relating to contact with Manchester City. The Prime Minister continues to face questions over his relations with the Premier League club during his time as mayor in Greater Manchester.

City have appealed the decision by the independent commission which found them guilty of over 100 breaches of Premier League financial regulations. Uncertainty surrounds the future of Enzo Maresca's side, with the list of sanctions ranging from points deductions to relegations out of the top-flight, and potentially the English Football League (EFL).

This week, declarations of Burnham's contact with City were released but it emerged that records of two dinners with City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak were deleted. During his time as mayor, he declared dinners valued at a total of £1,000 for hospitality.

The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) mentioned an informal meeting in the stands in 2019 and a formal meeting at the UK Government's Global Investment Summit in 2021 but two dinners were not specified. The Prime Minister has now said that he has asked the GMCA to go through the records with a fine-tooth comb.

He said: "It was included in the statement, it referenced meetings and hospitality at Manchester City when I was there as a guest. It did mention it, it was not prepared by me, it was prepared by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, so it was comprehensive.

"I've asked them to do a more manual trawl because I want everything possible to be out there. There is no question about that full transparency."

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City's ongoing legal battle with the Premier League has sent shockwaves within not just the footballing world but the wider community too. With the potential threat of political interference, Independent Football Regulator David Kogan has warned the PM that he will resign if the government step in.

He said: "Let me be really, really clear about this. You'll be aware that the original legislation brought in by the Conservative Government had in it a reference which we have to take some regard of some British trade relationships. That was removed from the legislation.

"Actually this was specifically discussed when it was going through Parliament so we are absolutely bound by one thing and that one thing is regulating football and regulating football clubs.

"Considerations beyond that are beyond our view and are not going to be part of any decision that we make about any outcome of any club that we regulate.

"Our independence is absolute and my independence personally is absolute. I made it very clear last year that if have any form of Government interference on the way we operate is going to result in me resigning from this role and I stand by that completely.