Westminster Council Leader Paul Swaddle has warned Prime Minister Andy Burnham that weakening London to boost other regions would harm the wider UK economy. Swaddle highlighted concerns over proposed tax changes and Westminster’s £100 million funding shortfall, arguing that policies which reduce investment and growth in the capital would impact the whole country. He said the Government should focus on growing every region rather than taking resources away from London.
This article by Rachel Burford is published in The Standard, and you can read it here.
Westminster Council warns new PM Burnham: Don't 'diminish' London to boost north
Westminster is facing having to impose huge council tax increases on residents to plug a £100 million blackhole in its finances
Andy Burnham must not “weaken the capital” the boost the rest of the country, the leader of Westminster Council has warned.
In a letter to the new prime minister, Paul Swaddle wrote “the route to a stronger national economy cannot be to diminish London”.
The borough is facing having to impose huge council tax increases on residents to plug a £100 million blackhole in its finances after a reevaluation of government funding.
Mr Burnham has also braced wealthier people in London for tax rises as he seeks to ease the burden on the less well off and has previously backed a new property tax, which if adopted would see a majority of households in the capital more paying more, according to an analysis
Chancellor Rachel Reeves last year also announced Labour will be implement a new “mansion tax” on properties valued at over £2 million.
“The UK does not have a London problem. It has a national growth problem. A stronger Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Newcastle, Cardiff, Glasgow and Belfast are essential to the country’s future,” Mr Swaddle said.
“So is a stronger London. Weakening the capital would not rebalance the economy; it would reduce the tax base, investment pull, visitor economy and global competitiveness on which the whole country depends.”
He argued that the government “should review existing policy areas that would cut across the growth mission”.
“One clear example is the proposed High Value Council Tax Surcharge,” he said.
“Westminster does not support the surcharge, either in principle or design It would fall especially heavily on Westminster, where high property values do not always translate into high household incomes, and it risks creating unfair outcomes for residents whose property value does not reflect their ability to pay, including long-standing residents in high-value homes, leaseholders, tenants who may see costs passed through rents, and homes that do not fit neatly into the Government’s assumed model of wealth.”
Mr Swaddle added: “Westminster wants Greater Manchester and every major city-region to succeed. But the route to a stronger national economy cannot be to diminish London.
“If the capital becomes less competitive, the whole country will feel the consequences through weaker tax receipts, lower investment, reduced visitor spending and a smaller global platform for UK business.”
Mr Burnham is set to become Britain’s sixth prime minister in a decade on Monday.
The former Manchester mayor has faced accusations that he is pro-north at the expense of London and the south.
However, in his speech accepting the Labour leadership on Friday he pledged to be a leader for all of Britain.
“I will be a leader for the north, the south, the east, and the west, for Scotland, Wales, and for Northern Ireland,” he said.
“Yes, the north of England has given me so much, everything, in fact. And in return, I have sought to give it the strongest voice I could.
“That was my job, but now I do the same for everywhere, because I see the same challenges everywhere I look.”
