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The government has threatened to take control of Transport for London from Mayor Sadiq Khan unless he cuts costs and increases fares in exchange for a rescue package.
The mayor of London needs a £ 4.9bn deal to bail out TfL for the next 18 months after passenger numbers collapsed and revenue collapsed as a result of the pandemic.
The government awarded an initial six-month support package worth £ 1.6bn to the vast transport authority in May.
Grant Shapps, the transportation secretary, wrote Khan with a series of demands in exchange for any financial rescue package.
The government has threatened to take control of London transport from Mayor Sadiq Khan unless he cuts costs and raises fares in exchange for a rescue package.
The mayor of London needs a £ 4.9bn deal to bail out TfL for the next 18 months after passenger numbers collapsed and revenues collapsed as a result of the pandemic.
According to the Financial Times, the letter demanded that Khan increaseme city-wide municipal taxes, expand the congestion fare zone, and set higher subway and bus fares.
He also raised the controversial issue of going ahead with driverless trains.
In return, Shapps proposed a financing agreement for six months until March 2021 called ‘the H2 agreement’ that would be replaced by a longer-term agreement.
But the transport secretary warned that government support for London “would take a different form” if the two sides failed to reach an H2 agreement or if its terms were not met.
The TfL board is scheduled to hold a decisive meeting on the deal on Wednesday.
“We will take standby legislative powers that will allow us, if necessary, to run TfL,” Mr. Shapps said in the letter.
According to the Financial Times, the letter demanded that Khan increase city taxes across the city, expand the congestion fare zone, and establish higher subway and bus fares (in 2016 subway photo).
“This would be combined with an additional series of short-term financing arrangements.”
In a response on October 6, Khan rejected the set of demands, insisting that an increase in city taxes for Londoners “would put even more confidence in an already bankrupt tax form and be regressive.”
On expanding the congestion zone, he added: “This forceful approach would have a catastrophic effect on the economy in the interior of London and beyond.”
Since then, the government has been accused of demanding “punitive” conditions to agree to the financing agreement.
Mick Cash, general secretary of the Union Railways, Maritime and Transport, said: “ Speculation that the government is threatening to take direct control of TfL sounds like more intimidation by this administration designed to impose its will on Londoners and trample on local democracy. .
“While we await official confirmation on future financing agreements for transportation in the capital, RMT reiterates our position that we will not tolerate any attacks on jobs and conditions in any sector as part of any agreement.”
Grant Shapps, the transportation secretary, wrote Khan with a series of demands in exchange for any financial rescue package.
The government’s battle with the Mayor of London comes at an uncomfortable time for return, as Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland all impose their own lockdown restrictions and Boris Johnson walked away from negotiations to support Greater Manchester.
In his letter, Shapps said he hoped Londoners would pay more by supplementing their city tax to help improve TfL’s finances.
He also made clear that he expected the mayor to start ‘pension and workplace reform’ in TfL, accelerate ‘inadequate’ progress in the implementation of driverless trains, reduce fare concessions for children and retirees, and implement a rate increase of more than the ‘RPI inflation + The 1% model agreed in May.
The mayor has imposed a rate freeze for the past four years. The Transport Secretary also urged the Mayor to expand Central London’s Congestion Charging Zone to cover the same areas as the ‘Ultra-Low Emission Zone’ from October 2021.
He compared the imposition of strict conditions in London to the government’s ‘continuous blank check’ for the rail industry with minimal conditions.
A spokesman for the Mayor of London said that negotiations with the government are continuing, but added: “ Suffice it to say that there is simply no way that any mayor can accept conditions of this nature, which would make it more difficult to combat the virus and quell the crisis of London. ” economic recovery at the worst possible moment ”.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Transport said: “We have agreed to an extension of the support period and the extension of unspent funds from the Extraordinary Transport Financing Agreement for London, allowing more time for negotiations for a new agreement.
“These discussions will ensure that London has a secure and reliable network. It would not be appropriate to reveal more details at this stage. ‘
