Four years and £13bn of debt later, TfL is bankrupt. Londoners are stuck with a higher congestion charge. And fares are set to rise.
Khan defended his record in Parliament today. But he left a few things out.
Read on 👇🏿
1/8
He froze single fares, mostly benefitting tourists. Cost = £640m
He delayed Crossrail again and again. Cost = £5bn
He paid out massive bonuses to TfL staff. Cost = £1.7m (in 2019 alone)
And he refused to find savings.
2/8
He said that he cut the number of TfL staff earning over £100k a year.
Actually, he increased the number. To 557.
I have written to the Mayor asking him to correct his statement.
3/8
And while Khan blames coronavirus for the debt, the facts prove him wrong.
Yes, the virus hit revenues.
But it didn’t delay Crossrail. It didn’t introduce a tourist subsidy. It didn’t pay 557 TfL staff £100k+ a year.
4/8
So when coronavirus hit, the government had to bail Khan out.
Khan tried to use the bailout as an excuse to raise the congestion charge and increase fares.
But the bailout didn’t force him to do either.
5/8
Khan acknowledged that it was his decision to raise the congestion charge.
I’m glad he’s taken responsibility for that. But he should also admit that it was his decision to raise fares. He signed it off in December 2019 — before the virus hit.
6/8
A higher c-charge. Higher fares. And taxpayers’ money spent on bailouts.
Londoners deserve better.
We deserve a mayor who makes sensible decisions — and accepts responsibility when things go wrong.
7/8
I’ll temporarily lift the ban on junk food advertising.
And I’ll use those savings to reverse Khan’s increased c-charge.
RT to share the truth.
8/8
dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8…