Khan threatens significant cuts across London

Sadiq Khan has warned that he will be left with no choice other than to make significant cuts across the Metropolitan Police, London Fire Brigade, Transport for London and the Greater London Authority, unless the government urgently acts to support local and regional authorities across the UK.

The Mayor of London has called on ministers to keep their promise that there would be no new era of austerity as a result of the coronavirus - and warned that failure to act now would undermine the government’s pledge to recruit 20,000 new police officers across the UK and efforts to transform the London Fire Brigade in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire.

The Greater London Authority group currently faces a forecast £493 million budget shortfall over the next two years as a result of an unprecedented loss of business rates and council tax income, caused by coronavirus. This is in addition to significant emergency costs already incurred by the GLA Group through schemes to support Londoners during the pandemic.

Khan promised that he will do everything possible to protect frontline services and has committed to take an immediate 10 per cent pay cut - and to freeze the salaries of his 15 direct appointments. This comes on top of the 11 per cent saving to taxpayers arising from the mayor’s decision in 2016 not to take a pension, unlike his predecessors.

He said: “Londoners did the right thing to tackle Covid-19 by following the rules, staying at home and helping to save lives. But now the government is punishing them with a new era of austerity. Covid-19 has had a devastating impact on London’s public finances which were in great shape before the pandemic. TfL’s fares income has dropped by more than 90 per cent and local business rates and council tax income has fallen off a cliff.

 “This is the worst possible time for a return to austerity – just when we need to invest in London’s recovery. Unless Ministers act, the current number of police officers will need to be reduced and it will be impossible to tackle youth violence or make the changes to the London Fire Brigade that are desperately needed after the awful Grenfell Tower tragedy.

“I didn’t enter politics to administer government austerity, and I will do everything in my power to persuade ministers not to force another era of austerity on local and regional government. Whatever happens I will protect the frontline services that Londoners depend on as much as possible - and it’s only right that I should volunteer for an immediate pay cut in these extremely difficult circumstances and continue not to take any pension contributions. In addition, I have taken the decision to freeze the salaries of my political appointments at City Hall.”