James Forsyth James Forsyth

The £1.6bn question: is Theresa May buying off Labour MPs for Brexit?

I understand that ministers are being pressured to rapidly approve a new, £1.6bn towns fund. The suspicion among ministers is that this fund, which is spread over seven years, is all part of Number 10’s efforts to get the support of some Labour MPs for Theresa May’s Brexit deal.

The write round asking for ministers’ approval for this scheme declares that, ‘This government is committed to supporting communities that feel left behind’. The region which will receive the most money per capita is the Black Country.

One cabinet minister tells me that while the write round letter has come from James Brokenshire ‘I don’t believe this has been invented in the MHLG (Ministry of Housing and Local Government)’. 26 out of 38 LEPS (Local Enterprise Partnerships) will share a billion of funding between them. The largest recipients of money are Greater Manchester which will receive £121.9

Comments

Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months

Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.

Already a subscriber? Log in