"It's right that political campaigns are funded"
Andy Burnham has registered accepting £345,000 in donations, including £164,347 from businessman Lord Sainsbury.
The donations are listed in the latest version of the MPs’ Register of Members’ Financial Interests following Burnham’s election to Parliament in June.
Lord Sainsbury’s donation went towards Burnham’s campaign to become Labour leader. Businessman Gary Lubner donated £25,000, while former Greater Manchester night-time economy tsar Sacha Lord contributed £35,000.
The TV production company Charlie Parsons Creative contributed £50,000, while think tank ThinkLabour, formerly known as Labour Together, provided £22,186.
The donations covered office space, IT equipment, staffing, polling, travel, social media support and message testing.
Burnham’s register also includes £20,000 towards his mayoral campaigning from the trade unions Unison, the Communications Workers Union and the Fire Brigades Union.
Labour peer Lord Blunkett donated a further £2,000 towards Burnham’s campaign to become the MP for Makerfield.
A Labour Party spokesperson said: “It’s right that political campaigns are funded by the generous support of party donors, rather than via the public purse.
“All declarations have been made in line with Parliamentary and Electoral Commission rules.”
New MPs are required to register their current financial interests and registrable benefits received during the 12 months before their election.
These declarations must be made within one month of being elected.
Gifts and hospitality Andy Burnham accepted when he was mayor of Greater Manchester include:
- Four tickets to Glastonbury, where he was speaking at an event, from the festival organisers and £1,000 for accommodation from the campaigning group PRS for Music.
- Tickets worth £3,800 to the Brit Awards in Manchester from Sony Music Entertainment.
- Two tickets worth £500 for the Aintree Racecourse from the Jockey Club Racecourse.
- Two tickets, valued at £458, from Lancashire Cricket Club for a game in The Hundred tournament.
A hamper basket and Wedgewood tea set worth £340 from the ambassador of Qatar.
The declarations come after scrutiny of gifts and hospitality accepted by senior Labour figures.
Shortly after becoming Prime Minister in 2024, Sir Keir Starmer faced criticism over gifts including tickets to a Taylor Swift concert and thousands of pounds for clothing.
He subsequently repaid more than £6,000 worth of gifts and hospitality.
Starmer also tightened the rules for serving ministers accepting gifts, requiring them to consider “the need to maintain the public’s confidence in the standard of propriety”.
