Ashley owns Sports Direct. He attacked Andy Burnham on Thursday. The clash was over plans to revive the UK high street. Ashley labelled those proposals populist and delusional. He stated they would be disastrous for retail.
Burnham is the Mayor of Greater Manchester. He has pressed policies directed at supporting troubled high streets. Ashley dismissed the approach. He said it was driven by politics rather than direct retail knowledge. The two are at odds. They disagree on how or whether government intervention can undo the slump of town centre shopping.