Conservative MP Paul Scully Lies to Voters about TFL Following in Boris Johnson's Footsteps

Live on the BBC, Conservative MP Paul Scully for Sutton & Cheam was asked “Are the government asking Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, to extend the congestion zone?”. Stony faced and with a shake of his head, Scully responded with a simple “No.”

Boris Johnson in the House of Commons followed a similar trend where he stated that Sadiq Khan had bankrupted TFL.

Both statements however have been fact checked and revealed as untruths. Concerns have been raised over elected officials using their privileged platform to spread misinformation to the electorate.

These actions have been described as a power grab strategy by the Conservative government at a time when major Labour city Mayors such as Khan and Burnham are standing up to the tactics of Johnson’s Conservative government, and as the Conservatives attempt to manoeuvre their own London Mayoral candidate, Shaun Bailey, into the limelight.

In a letter seen and published by the Financial Times, Conservative Secretary of State for Transport, Grant Shapps, wrote to Sadiq Khan and outlines his expectation that the Mayor extend the central London Congestion Zone to cover the same areas as the ULEZ, increasing its size 18 fold. In the same letter, Shapps also details how he expects Londoners to pay more through a supplement to their council tax, all whilst he asks for fare concessions for children and pensioners to be removed and fares increased above the rate of inflation, unlike public sector salaries.

This letter was sent to Khan during negotiations to help fund TFL throughout the Pandemic. Private rail companies have so far received billions without caveats, yet TFL and the Labour Mayor have had numerous strings attached to their funding.

Scully currently holds the position of Minister of State for London, a role which covers policy relating to London and includes informing Members of Parliament in the House of Commons about the activities of the Greater London Authority. Due to his role he is obligated to be aware of the policies and negotiations surrounding TFL and the GLA. Despite the content in Shapps’ letter however, Scully proceeded to say the exact opposite live on air, and then continue the misinformation on social media to his own constituents even when provided with the letter from his colleague.

Co-ordinating the misinformation with Scully, PM Johnson declared Khan the Bankrupter of TFL. However, in recent years, Khan has reduced the deficit he inherited from his predecessor, PM Johnson, by 71%. Khan has also managed to increase fare revenue by over £1billion and has given a boost to tourism and tourism spend by bringing in the hopper fare and single day fare freezes, an action which is thought to have contributed billions to the London economy. All this was achieved despite the previous London Mayor agreeing to remove £700million of central funding per annum on his way out. An action which some say was politically targeted to show up his Labour successor.

Whilst tough times are ahead for TFL, it is clear that Khan has been doing a good job with the challenging situation he inherited. It is also clear that the core issue has been the pandemic, an issue which has ravaged several sectors. The Conservatives asking for a further precept is a worrying trend and is likely to be a precursor for further “stealth taxes” that they aim to bring in whilst proclaiming to be the party of low tax and low interference.

The current model of government funding leaves public transport open to being used as a political football, with the consequences felt by the travelling public. Scully and Johnson appear to be attempting to spread misinformation in their bid to regain power in London.