Senior Conservative Sir James Cleverly has accused Andy Burnham of waging a “war on London” and promised to “fight its corner” in his pitch for the mayoralty.
The former foreign and home secretary said the Prime Minister’s devolution drive would involve “centralising power in his own backyard” of Manchester, where he served as mayor, at the expense of the capital.
Quitting the Shadow Cabinet
Sir James announced on Saturday he was quitting the Tory front bench, where he held the shadow housing, communities and local government brief since last July, to run for City Hall in the next election.
Labour incumbent Sir Sadiq Khan is halfway through his third term and has not confirmed whether he will stand again in May 2028.
Sir James told LBC on Sunday: “The fact is Andy Burnham, for all his careful phraseology, is basically very, very anti-London. You can see this not just in what he’s saying but what he’s doing. He’s stripping hundreds of millions of pounds out of the budget of London councils.”
Funding Cuts and Council Pressures
Under the Government’s fairer funding review, which was launched during Sir Keir Starmer’s premiership, some London councils face cuts to funding settlements as part of a bid to redirect cash to more deprived areas.
The Tory leaders of Westminster, Wandsworth and Kensington & Chelsea councils have said they are being forced to significantly increase council tax or slash services to plug a shortfall.
Taking aim at Mr Burnham, Sir James said: “He is blaming London for London’s own success. The UK cannot be successful as a country unless London is successful as a city. And I see this in Braintree. Andy Burnham just doesn’t get it….He’s got a war with London, and London needs someone to fight its corner.”
Campaign from the Back Benches
He added: “It is a centralising of power in Andy Burnham’s favoured place, which is, you know, in his own backyard, and everyone else is going to suffer. And London particularly, because he is putting forward a very anti-London agenda.”
The Government has defended changes to the allocations, arguing they are “fixing an outdated funding system” whereby some of the wealthiest parts of the country “benefitted from exceptionally high levels of government support, while communities facing greater pressures lost out”.
Labour said the Conservatives had “trashed the economy” while in power and left “ordinary people paying the price”.
Sir James will campaign for the mayoralty from the back benches and is not seeking re-election in his Braintree constituency at the next general election.
He said Tory leader Kemi Badenoch was “very supportive” when he told her earlier this week of his plans to step down from the shadow cabinet, though she would “stay neutral” on the Conservative selection process for a party candidate.
His departure opens up a vacancy amid rumours of a reshuffle planned for next month, when Parliament returns from the summer recess.
National Significance of London Victory
Speaking to Times Radio, he said success in London could be key to returning the Tories to power nationally, likening the prospect to Boris Johnson’s victory as mayor in 2008 before the Conservatives won the 2010 general election.
“London’s not just regional government. London is the economic centre, cultural centre, political diplomatic centre of the UK. It is a truly global city with truly global reach,” he said.
“And as we saw when Boris Johnson put himself forward for mayor of London, success in London, a good result in London, a win in London, is a really important part of getting the Conservatives back into government at national level.”
A Labour spokesperson said: “Labour is determined to deliver good growth in every postcode – including London. And that’s what we’re doing. The Tories trashed our economy and left ordinary people paying the price. They’ve learnt nothing from their mistakes in government.
“Labour and Sadiq Khan are continuing to deliver the better future Londoners all want to see: through free school meals, more council homes, more local police, and with knife crime and rough sleeping numbers falling.
“While more failed Tories pretend to stand up for the people they’ve repeatedly failed, Labour will continue working hard every day for every Londoner and take our great capital city forwards.”
