In response to the Chancellor’s Budget announcement, Labour’s London Assembly Economy Spokesperson, Leonie Cooper AM, said:
“With the highest death toll in Europe, the worst slump of any major economy and thousands of livelihoods lost, we needed to see a long-term and comprehensive recovery plan announced by the Chancellor today.
“There are some positive announcements included around extending furlough, as well as supporting jobs and apprenticeships – all things City Hall has been calling for.
“Proper investment in London would generate huge benefits for the rest of the country, but after this Budget, it remains the case that affordable housing, transport and green infrastructure in the capital are all grossly underfunded.
“What this announcement also lacked was a bold vision to address the damage done to jobs and wages in the last decade, which has been exacerbated by the pandemic. Returning to flawed policies like 5% deposit mortgages, which could push house prices up even further out of reach for Londoners, just won’t cut it.
“There was a complete absence of crucial extra support for overstretched local authorities and public services - and no commitment to permanently keeping the Universal Credit uplift, fixing the self-isolation payment system, boosting Statutory Sick Pay or Local Housing Allowance”.
ENDS