Sacha Lord, the Night Time Economy Adviser for Greater Manchester, has become a member of The Labour Party, it has been announced today.
The Adviser to Mayor Andy Burnham and co-founder of the Parklife Festival and The Warehouse Project music events, has been welcomed to the party by Labour Leader, Keir Starmer, who he met last week to discuss culture and the night time economy.
Lucy Powell, MP for Manchester Central and Shadow Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, has also welcomed Lord to the party, commenting,
“I’m really pleased Sacha has taken the step to join Labour. He’s got enormous experience in business and has been an incredibly strong voice for hospitality and the night time economy, both during Covid and the cost-of-living crisis. He will be a huge asset to our Party.
She continued, “As the Tories crash the economy, many people are taking another look at Labour, and it’s great to have Sacha in the Party.”
Growing up in Greater Manchester, Lord was appointed the city-region’s first ever Night Time Economy Advisor by Mayor Andy Burnham in 2018, providing a voice for workers, operators and the industry as a whole.
In this role, he has announced a raft of recommendations to improve safety, transport and cultural diversity in the region, including the introduction of later opening hours for greater accessibility and the development of night-time transport links to better serve communities on the outskirts of the region.
Lord, who has categorically ruled out standing as an MP, said,
“This is a move I have been wanting to make for a long time, and the current political circumstances have hastened this ambition. I have seen the positive difference that Andy has made during my time working with the Mayor’s office, and I want to support him in giving Greater Manchester and the North West a louder voice.
“Young people and young families today must be given the same opportunities I was given throughout the early stages of my career under the previous Labour Government. Not only was entrepreneurialism encouraged, but there were policies in place to help people get their first steps on the property ladder or discover new career paths, both geographically and across industry sectors.
“Over the past 12 years, I’ve watched the Conservatives take away these opportunities, by quashing ambition, limiting entrepreneurship, and implementing policies that restrain our cultural progress and our ability to work with our international counterparts.
“We need a change in Government and for me, the only Party to deliver opportunity is the Labour Party. I fully support the Labour Party in their ambitions to lead the country and I look forward to working even more closely with the Party going forward.”
