Emirati-linked companies increased their ownership of land in Manchester by 39 percent over a 10-year period. At its peak in 2023, land owned or developed by the United Arab Emirates in the city reached an area equivalent to 260 football pitches.
Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan owns the largest indoor arena in the United Kingdom and recently opened an upper-upscale hotel. The UK government under David Cameron requested that Manchester city council prepare three investment proposals for the UAE during the summer of 2013.
Manchester city council sold a portion of the city centre to Abu Dhabi for £5 million to facilitate the Manchester Life deal. The Manchester Life project was intended to construct 6,000 homes but only delivered 2,039 units.
A total of 4,878 new properties were built by other developers and under the Manchester Life project, yet only 8 percent of these were social or affordable housing. Manchester Life provided zero units of social and affordable housing.
Mark Blake said, “It’s bound to cause resentment,” regarding the housing situation. Andy Burnham opened a food bank in 2021.
In the summer of 2016, Burnham told the Salford Star he would prevent large property firms from using multimillion-pound taxpayer-funded loans from the mayoral authority. Burnham approved a £55 million loan to Jersey-registered property firms owned by Sheikh Mansour less than a year after his 2016 statement.
Sheikh Mansour has a reported fortune of approximately £300 billion. The UAE warned the UK government it could withdraw billion-pound arms deals if Britain failed to take action against the Muslim Brotherhood.
A secret Whitehall unit was created to ensure the UAE remains on the side of the UK.
