Borough deprived of cash by 'Tory cronyism' says Julian Bell

Ealing Council leader Julian Bell

Ealing Labour Leader Julian Bell has joined the leaders of 11 other Labour run London boroughs to write to the chancellor regarding what they describe as the ‘grossly unfair’ distribution of Levelling Up Funding.

Rishi Sunak is being asked to give more details about how the allocation of the £4.8 billion levelling up fund was made after it emerged some of the most deprived areas of London would miss out.

Ealing is one of fourteen boroughs in London that City Hall has calculated should have been given priority one for funding using the Index of Multiple Deprivation, a widely used measure of poverty. Only three London boroughs have been given the highest ranking to receive government cash along with the chancellor’s own constituency of Richmond in Yorkshire.

Councillor Bell said, “We have a right to know why the chancellor’s constituency is prioritised for levelling up funding while Ealing isn’t.

“Ealing is 88th most deprived in the country. Richmondshire is 265th. Tory cronyism is depriving 12 Labour led London boroughs - including Ealing - of urgently needed funding.

“After a decade of austerity inflicted by Tory governments, and the refusal of the current government to refund councils the huge costs of responding to Covid-19, extra funding would make a huge difference to boroughs like Ealing.

“It is bitterly disappointing to see the chancellor throwing money at better off Tory constituencies and downgrading the help received by some of the most deprived areas in the country. The chancellor urgently needs to re-think the distribution of levelling up funds and ensure it goes to those who really need it.”

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has hit out at what he has called “blatant unfairness” and he has urged the Government to “come clean” about how it how it decided where money should go.

Mr Khan said, “I fully support levelling up those bits of the country that are left behind, but the fact is that London has some of the most deprived communities of anywhere in the country, with stark inequalities in health and life expectancy, made even worse by the pandemic. It therefore beggars belief that the very bits of London needing levelling up have virtually been ignored from Government funding dedicated to talking inequality.

“Our analysis shows that, based on levels of deprivation, 14 boroughs should have been given the highest priority for funding, yet only two have. Ministers need to now come clean about this blatant unfairness. These formulas for funding can’t be cooked up behind closed door – Londoners deserve full transparency about how these decisions are made and why our communities have missed out. Otherwise there’s more than a whiff of pork barrel politics about it.”

The Mayor of London has accused the Government of displaying “constant anti-London rhetoric” and has said that “levelling down London will only make us all poorer”.

The Government’s Levelling Up Prospectus, published this month, said that the metrics used for deciding a place’s priority were based on “its need for economic recovery, regeneration and improved connectivity”.

The prospectus also said, “Recent and committed levels of Government investment may also be considered as part of our assessment of an area’s need for funding, including investment from any of the devolved administrations.”

The chancellor told a post-budget press conference that the metric was “based on an index of economic need, which is transparently published” this is contradicted by the prospectus which says the method of calculation will be published shortly. Treasury sources were unable confirm when this would be.

A Treasury spokesman said, “The bandings do not represent eligibility criteria – and money will be allocated to the areas most in need. Further technical details will be published by the government in due course.”

March 9, 2021