London is under attack. The perpetrators are aiming at its wealth, the opportunities it offers, its cultural vibrancy and its power. These foes are themselves mighty. They are the majority of Britain’s political class.
Of the main parties, the noisiest complaints come from the Conservatives. Displaying an undisguised hostility to the capital, the Tory manifesto talks of spreading wealth and opportunity across the UK, “not just the most prosperous places in London and the south-east”. It calls for arts funding to be redirected from the capital, for Channel 4 television and for civil servants to be relocated by force. “We will ensure that senior posts move too, so that operational headquarters as well as administrative functions are centred not in London but around Britain,” it promises. Labour is less vindictive, but shares the analysis. It complains the UK has “relied too heavily on the financial sector centred on London and the south-east”.
Politicians’ antipathy towards London is bizarre. It is definitively the cash cow that allows them to promise the high quality public services all parts of the country crave.