The Sunday Times Rich List has been revealed for 2022 – and it shows that the wealthiest people in the UK have grown their fortunes to a record £170 billion this year.
The annual list details the wealthiest 250 people in the UK and, alongside the current Chancellor of the Exchequer, this year’s super-rich list features ten people from the North West – including a couple of lads from Salford.
According to The Times, Rishi Sunak is the first-ever frontline political figure to feature in its list since it began in 1989. He and his wife, Akshata Murty, join the 2022 list with a combined £730m fortune just days after the Chancellor told people the ‘next few months will be tough’.
This year’s list also includes a record number of 177 UK billionaires, six more than in 2021,
The full list, now in its 34th year, shows that whilst millions in the country are enduring extreme hardships as UK inflation hits its highest rate in 40 years, those at the other end of the scale are still enjoying all the spoils of the free market.
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As The Timesitself states: “This year’s analysis shows a golden era for the super rich has continued unchecked.
“This year’s top 250 now have more wealth than the entire 1,000 entries of the 2017 Rich List.”
On the 2022 North West list, Michael Platt, a 53-year-old Preston-born hedge fund manager and Tory donor who resides in Switzerland, has seen his fortune rise by £2bn in a year to make him the wealthiest in the region.
In 2020, Platt’s hedge fund BlueCrest Capital Management was fined $170million for misleading its investors and was accused of using a separate fund, run by its top traders, that invested employee’s money.
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Platt has knocked the Cheshire-based 7th Duke of Westminster, Hugh Grosvenor, off the top spot – placing Prince George’s billionaire godfather at second place in the North West with a fortune of £9.726bn.
In third place is Jim Ratcliffe, the Oldham-born CEO of the Ineos chemical group. Worth £6.075bn, he has recently made headlines for making a failed bid to buy Chelsea football club – leading to speculation that he may now turn his attention to Manchester United instead.
63-year-old Liverpudlian Tom Morris, the founder of the ever-popular Home Bargains, is fourth on the regional list – £766 million richer than last year.
Rochdale brothers Mohsin and Zuber, the Lancashire-born founders of Euro Garages and new majority shareholders in Asda, have increased their wealth by £50m. The duo is now worth £4.73bn.
Sixth on the list are B&M founders Simon, Bobby and Robin Arora with a combined wealth of £2.543bn, followed by former Trafford Centre owner John Whittaker (of the Peel Group) at £1.6bn.
Henry Moser of Cheadle-based finance group Together sits in ninth place with a fortune of £1.565bn, and last on the list are Fred and Peter Done, owners of the bookmaking chain Betfred.
The Rich List bases its findings on what is called ‘identifiable wealth’, meaning that which can be publicly seen. This includes values of land, property, art, horses, and shares in public companies.
The paper is unable to access bank accounts or other private finance records. The full list can be viewed on The Times website here.
Feature image – Flickr / Wikimedia Commons / Wikipedia
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Major headliner pulls out of Manchester Village Pride
Daisy Jackson
One of the Manchester Village Pride headliners has had to pull out of their scheduled appearance, just one day before the celebrations begin.
Nadine Coyle was supposed to be headlining the LGBTQ+ event on Friday 27 August.
But in a statement shared by Manchester Village Pride today, they announced that the former Girls Aloud star is ‘under the weather’.
Nadine will be pulling out of her headline slot to ‘rest and recuperate’, but added that she hopes to see Manchester for Pride again soon.
Thankfully, Manchester Village Pride has already found a suitably fabulous replacement for the main stage on Friday – B*Witched.
The iconic Irish girl group will be encouraging ticket-holders to dig out their double denim and dance to hits like C’est La Vie and Rollercoaster.
In the statement shared by Manchester Village Pride, Nadine’s team said: “Nadine is so sorry to have to step out of Manchester Village Pride this year. It was her very first Pride many years ago and she loves getting to spend time with you all.
“Nadine’s voice has been under the weather and she only wants to give absolute best to you all which sadly won’t be possible this weekend as she needs time to rest and recuperate.
“We hate to do it so near the day. Nadine was really hoping she was going to be well enough and hopes she can see you in Manchester for Pride again soon.
“Thank you for being so kind and understanding and we hope you have a wonderful weekend.”
Manchester Village Pride added: “We know how excited many of you were for a massive hit of 2000s pop nostalgia, and we promised you a party. We’ve been working around the clock, and we are beyond thrilled to announce that pop royalty B*WITCHED are stepping in at the eleventh hour!”
Chester Zoo announces return of its £10 tickets for limited time only with extended opening hours
Emily Sergeant
Chester Zoo has announced the return of its popular £10 tickets deal for a limited time only.
You may remember that earlier this summer, Chester Zoo invited people from across the North West to visit for just £10, and as the offer proved so popular, they’ve now brought it back again for a limited time.
For the past three years running now, Chester Zoo has officially been named the UK’s best zoo thanks to tens of thousands of positive TripAdvisor reviews, and now as the summer draws to a close, you’ll get to see exactly what makes it such a special place worth visiting for a cut price.
With the offer only applicable to afternoons this summer, Afternoon Tickets allow entry to Chester Zoo from 2pm onwards – with the last entry being one-hour before it closes.
Chester Zoo is offering £10 tickets to visitors this summer / Credit: Chester Zoo
Without this offer, standard admission tickets to Chester Zoo usually cost up to £38 for adults, £37 for students, and £28 for children, all including a 10% donation to the zoo’s conservation efforts, while babies and carers go free.
So it really is worth making the most of these limited-time £10 tickets while you still can – with the offer now running until 6 September.
The best bit about the offer returning? The zoo is currently operating its extended opening hours until 6pm too, so included for the bargain price of a £10 ticket, you’ll even get to see all the animals while the sun goes down.
Afternoon tickets are only available online and must be booked in advance to claim the £10 offer.
Tickets can only be purchased online before 4pm on the day of your visit, and standard admission tickets can be purchased from our ticket office at the main entrance.
Find out more and book your £10 tickets online here.
Georgina Pellant -
20th May 2022 
