'Who do they think they are?': Andy Burnham reacts to 'shameful' Sue Gray report

A top government adviser has warned that Greater Manchester cannot rely on 'handouts' from London and must raise money itself to fund some of its plans. Sir John Armitt, who is the chairman of the UK's National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), made the comments in Manchester on Monday (June 13).

Public transport across Manchester was under the limelight this weekend after a heaving Saturday night of big gigs and Parklife Festival saw many attending struggle to make their way home.

Dozens of people gathered in the centre of Manchester to mark the five year anniversary of the Grenfell tower fire which killed 72 people.

Controversial plans to open a Hooters restaurant and bar - where scantily-clad young women will serve customers - at Salford Quays have been given the go-ahead. The decision flies in the face of fierce local opposition, including from both the Salford City Mayor Paul Dennett and Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham.

post Platty Joobs Britain. Chuckling fondly at the memory of the Queen chatting marmalade sandwiches with Paddington bear. Then it hit us like a train on Monday morning.

Nearly 36,000 older people in Greater Manchester are missing out on more than £1,700 a year in pension top-up payments, new figures reveal. Around £70 million is unclaimed across the city-region, with pensioners now being urged to check if they are eligible for the payment which 'could make all the difference'.

Johnny Depp was mobbed by fans in Glasgow as he ended a week of performances following victory in his US defamation lawsuit. Mr Depp took to a UK stage with Jeff Beck for the fifth time this week, having recently played in Sheffield, London and Gateshead.

Greater Manchester will not accept the government's proposal of a city centre Clean Air Zone charging taxis, vans, buses and lorries, Andy Burnham has said. The mayor was told in a letter from Secretary of State George Eustice today (June 1) to reduce the area affected by the controversial scheme by 95 pc or more, effectively containing the Clean Air Zone within Manchester city centre.

Rishi Sunak has insisted that he did not time handing out £21bn-worth of cost-of-living support to deflect from Partygate. The Chancellor announced the new package of support yesterday (Thursday), just one day after Sue Gray's highly anticipated report on Downing Street's lockdown parties was published.

A Tory minister said he is "too busy" to speak on Good Morning Britain today - a day after Sue Gray's report into lockdown breaking parties was published.

Leaders in Greater Manchester have demanded a breakdown of how high speed rail bosses have arrived at an 'unaffordable' estimate of £5bn for an underground station at Manchester Piccadilly. Both Mayor Andy Burnham and Transport for the North have long-argued for an underground station to future-proof rail connections across the north and boost the value of HS2.

Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross has performed another partygate u-turn by claiming Boris Johnson will have to quit after the war is over in Ukraine.

Boris Johnson has dismissed calls to resign after a damning report found there had been a culture of Covid rule breaking in Downing Street during lockdown.

COVID lockdowns.Gray’s long-awaited 37-page report, which includes nine photographs featuring Prime Minister Boris Johnson, was published this morning (May 25) and can be read in full here.“Whatever the initial intent, what took place at many of these gatherings and the way in which they developed was not in line with COVID guidance at the time,” the report says.“Even allowing for the extraordinary pressures officials and advisers were under, the factual findings of this report illustrate some attitudes and behaviours inconsistent with that guidance.”Gray concluded in her report that “a number of these gatherings should not have been allowed to take place or to develop in the way that they did”, and said that “there is significant learning to be drawn from these events which must be addressed immediately across Government”.In a statement given to the House of Commons this afternoon, Johnson said that he “takes full responsibility for everything that happened on my watch” and that proposals for “change and reform” of Downing Street are being implemented.“It is clear from what Sue Gray had to say that some of these gatherings went on for far longer than was necessary and they clearly fell in breach of the rules,” he told MPs, before saying that he had “no knowledge” of proceedings until the report as “I simply wasn’t there”.In response to Johnson’s statement, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said that Gray’s report “lays bare the rot that under this prime minister has spread in Number 10, and it provides definitive proof of how those within the building treated the sacrifices of the British people with utter contempt”.Michael Kill, the NTIA’s CEO, has issued a response on the findings of the Gray report, saying that the

Rail passengers the length and breadth of the UK face a summer of major disruption after workers voted for the biggest strike more than 25 years. As the Manchester Evening News reported last night, members of the RMT union backed industrial action over pay, conditions, 2,500 Network Rail maintenance job cuts and reforms that the union claims will lead to a wave of ticket office closures.

Boris Johnson has come under increased pressure to introduce a windfall tax on oil and gas firms' profits amid the growing cost of living crisis. The prime minister has insisted that the government will "put our arms around people" despite declining to specify what support might be offered to struggling households and when.

It has been one of the most divisive political issues in Greater Manchester in recent months – and it was a decisive one for some voters at the ballot box. The Clean Air Zone dominated the news at the start of the year as people spotted signs warning the controversial scheme would soon commence.

The police investigation into lockdown-breaking parties in Downing Street and White Hall has finally concluded. The Metropolitan Police clarified that the number of people to receive fixed penalty notices (FPNs) is 83.

Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis yesterday (May 18), two of his surviving bandmates – Bernard Sumner and Stephen Morris of New Order – appeared in Parliament to discuss mental health and suicide prevention.Curtis took his own life in May 1980 after battling depression and epilepsy in his final years. In an event that was originally due to take place in 2020 to mark 40 years since his passing, but was delayed due to the COVID pandemic, a special talk and panel titled Suicide Prevention: Breaking The Silence took place in the Speaker’s House in Parliament.NME were invited along to the event hosted by Kerry McCarthy MP that was chaired by the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham.

It's a landmark known across Greater Manchester. Soon, a new community will emerge in the shadow of Stockport's famous viaduct.