Keir Starmer has been slammed after it emerged his announcement about extra cash for potholes actually represents a cut in funding. Last week the Prime Minister promised “extra cash” to improve Britain’s terrible roads, and warned councils could lose funding unless they make improvements.
Sir Keir confirmed a £1.6 billion highway maintenance pot for local councils, which he claimed would be enough to fill 7 million potholes each year. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander also confirmed £4.8 billion funding for 2025/26 for National Highways to deliver critical road schemes and maintain motorways and major A-roads. Sir Keir boasted: “British people are bored of seeing their politicians aimlessly pointing at potholes with no real plan to fix them. That ends with us.”
However he’s now come under fire after it emerged that the £4.8 billion pot is actually a 5% cut in funding for road maintenance compared with the previous year.
The figure is a reduction on the current budget of £5.07 billion delivered by the Tories.
A government official has admitted to the Financial Times that the 2024/25 figure is higher than the sum championed by the Prime Minister last week.
They admitted: “Funding will fluctuate year on year as schemes are in different phases of delivery”.
The Department for Transport insisted that the sum is an “interim” figure before the next five-year settlement is agreed.
A spokesman said: “We are committed to delivering road infrastructure which boosts growth and connectivity, and are working on the next multiyear road investment strategy for a long-term approach to achieve this.”
However the LibDems’ transport spokesman Vikki Slade blasted the cut as “shocking”.
She said: “Our roads are crumbling and we are in the midst of a pothole pandemic.”
“The Conservatives slashed funding for our transport and maintenance works.
“The Labour government seem content to follow the Conservatives’ terrible record and hope no one notices.”
Noble Francis, economics director at the Construction Products Association, warned: “The government keeps talking about investment and growth but cutting road projects isn’t the way to deliver that.”
“What is needed is government investment that will give the private sector the confidence to invest in jobs and technological innovation.”
The AA added: “Cancelling road projects and not reducing congestion hits haulage efficiency and therefore creates a drag on UK business. That is at odds with government ambitions to improve economic growth.”
