Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham says he ‘accepted‘ Sacha Lord’s resignation as night-time economy advisor last night.
It comes as the Arts Council announced it is to ‘withdraw’ a Covid support grant of over £400,000 awarded to Lord’s former company, Primary Event Solutions, during the pandemic.
In 2018, Burnham appointed Lord as Greater Manchester’s first ever Night Time Economy Advisor, to advise his team and the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) on all issues relating to the night-time economy, providing a voice for workers, operators and the industry as a whole.
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In a lengthy statement, Burnham was full of praise for Mr Lord’s work. Burnham said: “Over the past seven years, as our Night-Time Economy Advisor, Sacha has been a brilliant and vocal champion for Greater Manchester’s night-time economy and cultural sectors during one of the industry’s most difficult periods in living memory.
“He has put a huge amount of time and energy into his work as Mayoral Advisor, supporting our councils and many local businesses. He has done all of this completely free and out of his own pocket, never taking or receiving any payment for this work.”
Primary Event Solutions, where Lord was a director, received a grant from the Culture Recovery Fund, administered by the Arts Council during the pandemic. The company was legally wound up in 2023. In May 2024, the Arts Council revealed it would be ‘conducting additional checks’ into an application made for Covid support funding by Primary Event Solutions, following an in-depth investigation by Manchester news website The Mill over the Covid funding.
On the latest news from the Arts Council, Burnham added: “Sacha has accepted there were inaccuracies in a grant application, and I believe him when he says there was no intention to mislead and that he made no personal gain from the grant. Given that the Arts Council’s Counter Fraud team previously found no misuse of public money, it is not clear to me why the Arts Council has now reached this decision.
“Sacha has gradually stepped back from his role in recent months. Last night, he stepped down as Mayoral Advisor. With regret, I accepted his resignation and respect his decision. We value his commitment to Greater Manchester and the massive contribution he has made.”
