Marcus Rashford presented with honorary doctorate from University of Manchester
He said in his acceptance speech how "bittersweet" it felt to receive an honorary degree for fighting child poverty the day after the Universal Credit uplift was retracted.
And yesterday, he was finally presented with the degree at an Old Trafford ceremony.
Former Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson – who also boasts an honorary degree from the university – joined the 23-year-old footballer’s friends and family to witness him collecting the award at Manchester United’s home ground.
Dressed in a red, maroon, and gold graduation gown with a doctorate cap for the ceremony, Rashford was presented his degree by vice-chancellor, Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell.
It’s not hard to see why the Manchester United and England star made history when he was bestowed with the accolade, as he was rightly-recognised by the city’s largest university for his ongoing battle against child food poverty – including forcing Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the UK government to make a U-turn on free school meals.
ADVERTISEMENT
Rashford’s honorary doctorate adds to the numerous other awards and accolades he’s collected over the past 18 months to recognise his extraordinary acts of selflessness off the pitch.
Continuing his philanthropic efforts, Rashford used his acceptance to reveal how “bittersweet” it felt to receive an honorary degree for fighting child poverty the day after the Universal Credit uplift was retracted, adding that millions of families across the UK have now “lost a lifeline”.
ADVERTISEMENT
Rashford also called for politicians to get “out into communities” – including his hometown of Wythenshawe in south Manchester.
He said: “To be here in the presence of a great such as Sir Alex, and those who have played a huge role in my journey to be where I am today is special.
“I’m here to receive my honorary doctorate for my work around child poverty [but] yesterday, millions of families across the UK lost a lifeline and a means of staying afloat [in] a move that could see child poverty rise to one in three children.
ADVERTISEMENT
“For that reason, today is bittersweet.
“It’s time that representatives got out into communities like mine [and] it’s time they saw first-hand the true measure of struggle [as] COVID-19 can no longer be used as an excuse.”
Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell presented @MarcusRashford with the award and spoke at length about what an incredible role model he is. pic.twitter.com/we1sGsKWNU
— The University of Manchester (@OfficialUoM) October 7, 2021
Dame Nancy described the footballer as “an exceptional young man”, whose “sense of community and generosity goes well beyond his years”, adding: “Our university also has social responsibility at its core, and we are extremely proud to share these values with Marcus [so] it really is an honour to finally present him with this well-deserved award on behalf of our institution.”
Details released of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners while Mayor
Emily Sergeant
Details of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners during his tenure as Mayor of Greater Manchester have been released.
In case you need bringing up to speed on the situation a little first, Manchester City was found guilty back in September all of its charges related to the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, and on top of that, was also found guilty of the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation.
According to the Premier League, the independent Commission found that Manchester City had arranged so-called ‘sham’ commercial deals with a number of its sponsors.
These were part of a disguised funding scheme – with those sponsors only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees.
The remainder was then funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.
The Commission also concluded, as quoted by the Premier League, that the club had ‘made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the Premier League investigation’.
Within the past week or so, it has since come to light that now-Prime Minister Andy Burnham had dealings with Manchester City during his tenure as Greater Manchester Mayor, and Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has now issued a public statement, giving details on the matter and what these ‘dealings’ entailed.
A spokesperson for GMCA confirmed that Burnham had a ‘formal meeting’ with Man City Chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, back in October 2021.
The statement reads in full: “In October 2021, Andy Burnham, in his role as Mayor of Greater Manchester, had a formal meeting with Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the UK Government’s Global Investment Summit arranged by the Department for International Trade.
“In his capacity as Mayor, he was a guest of Manchester City FC at home matches on a small number of occasions, including attending Vincent Kompany’s testimonial match in September 2019, where he met the Chairman informally in the stands. These have been declared in the usual way.
“Also during his time as Mayor, representatives of Greater Manchester sporting clubs would routinely join business delegations as part of Mayoral international visits.
“This included representatives from Manchester United travelling to Austin and Dublin, Lancashire Cricket Club joining a delegation to India, and Manchester City FC staff supporting visits to China and Japan.”
Featured Image – Lauren Hurley / Number 10 Downing Street (Press Image via Flickr)
News
Multiple arrests made for ‘tragedy chanting’ and police officer assault as Man City defeated Liverpool
Emily Sergeant
Multiple people were arrested over the weekend as Manchester City defeated Liverpool in a Premier League clash.
Merseyside Police have confirmed that a total of 10 people were arrested during the policing operation at Liverpool’s home ground of Anfield as they hosted Manchester City on Sunday 11 October.
One man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police constable, five were on suspicion of tragedy chanting, one on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly, two for affray, and one on suspicion of throwing items onto the pitch.
Police are now appealing to the public, and are particularly looking to speak to witnesses of the assault of the officer.
At around 6:35pm, as fans left the stadium, a police officer sustained a ‘serious facial injury’ during the arrest of a man on Anfield Road, and was subsequently taken to hospital for treatment but is now recovering at home.
Investigating officers are now conducting enquiries, speaking to witnesses, and analysing CCTV and camera phone footage.
Chief Inspector Leanne Hobin said it’s ‘extremely disappointing’ that an officer has sustained a serious injury while carrying out their duty.
“I hope the arrests send a clear message and act as a deterrent to others,” Chief Inspector Hobin continued. “Anyone who engages in this abhorrent behaviour risks ending up in custody and getting a criminal record.
“Despite the actions of a few, the overwhelming majority of the 60,000 fans in attendance behaved well and I want to thank them for their co-operation.”
Manchester City ended up defeated Liverpool 3-0 during the Premier League clash at Anfield.
The Manc -
8th October 2021 
