The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has paid nearly £1m to anonymous beneficiaries since 2024, with the payments listed in its public accounts but offering little detail on recipients or services provided.
The payments, recorded as consultancy work, professional fees, commissioned services, grants, and other categories, appear in the GMCA's accounts. However, the specific services delivered and the identities of those who received the money are often not disclosed.
Redaction Policy and Human Error
A GMCA spokesperson said the authority redacts details of named individuals when their name is not their trading name, a practice described as 'in line with UK data protection legislation and local government transparency code of practice.' The system is under 'continual review.'
One notable payment of £210,000 was made to a developer in June 2026 and listed as capital grant expenditure, but the recipient's name was redacted. The combined authority attributed this to 'human error.'
In another case, £14,900 was spent on 'consultancy' fees in May 2026, with the recipient's name redacted and no record of the service provided.
Calls for Greater Transparency
The Manchester Evening News reviewed hundreds of payments since 2024, finding a combined total of nearly £1m went to anonymous beneficiaries over three years. Any payment of £500 or more is published in the GMCA's accounts, which are publicly accessible, with records dating back to 2018.
Councillor Sian Astley, leader of the Reform UK group in Manchester, said: "Clearly a combined authority of the size of GMCA is going to have a long list of expenditure - in this case over £3b per annum - that's a lot of individual payments.
"There are though a significant amount noted as 'redacted personal data' and Reform UK would much prefer it if there were more clarity on what these payments are for, who they go to and why they are redacted.
"It seems on the face of it very strange that a payment of £210,000 of public money be made for 'capital grant expenditure' and the taxpayer not be allowed to know who this went to.
"Or 'rent' of over £83,000 going out in December 2025 but to a hidden landlord. Or why branding companies, music commissions, consultancy fees or professional fees are made secret."
Official Response and Next Steps
Manchester Lib Dems said the public 'have a right to know who is receiving public money here in Greater Manchester.'
A GMCA spokesperson added: "GMCA is committed to publishing information in a manner which is accessible to residents and other stakeholders.
"We redact details of named individuals who receive payments when their name is not their trading name, in line with UK data protection legislation and local government transparency code of practice.
"We keep how we do this under continual review to ensure that we appropriately balance transparency of our expenditure with our obligations to safeguard personal data.
"One payment was mistakenly redacted, and this error will be rectified."
