Prime Minister Andy Burnham has rejected allegations that he is biased against the capital, saying he wants to “free up London to go faster and further”.
In an exclusive interview with The Standard, the new Prime Minister hit back at claims that he is “anti-London”. The former Mayor of Greater Manchester has sparked warnings from union chiefs over his plans to axe thousands, if not tens of thousands, of Whitehall jobs as part of the biggest “devolution of power in modern times”.
Backing for Sadiq Khan
Mr Burnham has backed Sir Sadiq Khan standing for a fourth term as Mayor of London. He is also expected to channel billions more funding to the regions in his bid to deliver “good growth in every postcode” and rebalance Britain’s economy, raising fears that key transport projects in London could lose out.
However, one of his key economic advisers, Lord O’Neill of Gatley, has urged him to focus on London, the West Midlands and the Northern Powerhouse of Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds, as he seeks stronger growth for the UK.
Pressed whether former Goldman Sachs chief economist Lord O’Neill was right, the PM told The Standard: “I fully agree with him that London is the powerhouse of the country, and what I want to do as Prime Minister through Number 10 North is free up London to go much further and faster.
“So, what I've already done as Prime Minister is allocate funding through the Social and Affordable Homes Programme. If London can free itself from the housing crisis and begin to build the homes that people can truly afford, then that means that it's in such a stronger place going forward.”
Tourist tax and housing funding
He also argued that the new “tourist tax” - or overnight visitor levy - which could raise £250 million a year for City Hall, would fund schemes in London “to improve the visitor experience and cement its place as the world's most visited city”.
Mr Burnham added: “London can go to the next level. I want to work with Sadiq to make sure that he's got all the backing from me and Number 10 North to take London forward.” The premier has also given his full support for Sir Sadiq Khan to seek a fourth term in City Hall.
But Tory mayoral hopeful Sir James Cleverly has accused the Prime Minister of being anti-London. Braintree MP and ex-London Assembly member Sir James also criticised Sir Sadiq as someone who is “not going to stand up to Andy Burnham's full-throated attack on London's prosperity”.
Property tax and rebalancing
The Prime Minister has signalled that he may impose more tax on higher end homes, many of which are in London, in coming years. But he rejected ex-Home Secretary Sir James’ attack, branding the anti-London claim as “ludicrous”. He stressed that he had no plans to embark on any major reform of property tax imminently.
He has also argued that by rebalancing Britain’s economy, housing and cost-of-living pressures on London can be eased.
Mr Burnham highlighted the recent announcement in the Social and Affordable Homes Programme which is set to see £6 billion injected into building more council and housing association homes in London. “You will see that London was the significant beneficiary,” he explained. “And the reason for that is because London has got more advanced housing powers.
“It's been able, with its 30 or so boroughs, to develop stronger plans to build a new generation of council housing in London. We've set up London now with the funding to do that to be a template then for other parts of the country.”
