ASIAN philanthropist Shalni Arora has donated £10,000 towards Andy Burnham’s Makerfield by-election campaign, as the new register of MPs’ interests reveals almost £350,000 in donations and support for the prime minister.
The donation was received on June 1 and was specifically recorded as a contribution towards the campaign, according to the latest Register of Members’ Financial Interests.
Arora is the founder and chief executive of Savannah Wisdom, a private family charitable foundation, and a founder trustee of Belong, the Cohesion and Integration Network. She has been recognised for her work in charity and philanthropy with an OBE in 2024.
She and her husband, British billionaire Simon Arora, also funded the UK’s first permanent South Asia Gallery at Manchester Museum. Arora has received the Beacon Award for Philanthropy and a Medal of Honour from the University of Manchester for her contribution to the city.
She is also a trustee of the British Asian Trust and supports women and girls in India through her charitable work.
Other donors
Arora was one of several prominent supporters who provided financial backing to Burnham during his return to Westminster and subsequent Labour leadership campaign.
The biggest contributor was billionaire and long-standing Labour donor Lord David Sainsbury, who provided support worth £164,347. This included funding for staff working on the leadership campaign, office space and contractors working on policy and operations.
Former Greater Manchester night-time economy adviser Sacha Lord gave £35,390 towards staffing, accommodation and other campaign costs, including travel, venue hire, polling and digital support.
Television executive and Labour donor Charlie Parsons contributed £50,000 through his company, while Gary Lubner, the former chief executive of the company behind Autoglass, gave £25,000 towards Burnham’s Labour leadership campaign.
ThinkLabour, formerly known as Labour Together, provided £22,186 worth of staff and IT equipment, while Ernst & Young provided a member of staff on secondment valued at £16,500.
Former cabinet minister David Blunkett, one of Burnham’s political mentors, also donated £2,000 towards the Makerfield campaign. Four £5,000 donations were also made by the Fire Brigades Union, its north-west regional office, the Communication Workers Union and Unison for mayoral campaigning between March and April.
The register also records hospitality and travel worth more than £12,000. This included Glastonbury tickets in 2025, where Burnham was speaking, and £500 worth of tickets to Ladies Day at Aintree. Sony Music also provided two Brit Awards tickets worth £3,800.
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.”
