A video obtained by the New Statesman magazine shows the former chancellor telling the Conservatives that he had started to change the types of public funding to ensure other parts of the country get “the funding they deserve”. Speaking in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, last week, he said: “I’ve managed to start changing the types of funding, to make sure that areas like this get the funding they deserve because we inherited a bunch of formulas from Labor who pushed the whole financing. in deprived urban areas and this had to be reversed. “I set to work to undo that.” Politics Hub: Liz Truss acknowledges ‘tough winter’ and Sunak comes under fire Labor MPs have expressed their outrage at the comments, with shadow secretary Lisa Nundy calling them “outrageous”. He has written to the Secretary of State for Leveling Up, Greg Clark, asking him to investigate the changes Mr Sunak refers to and what justification was given for them. He said: “Rishi Sunak openly boasts that he set the rules for funneling taxpayers’ money into wealthy Tory boroughs. “This is our money. It should be spent fairly and where it’s needed most – not used as a bribe to Tory members. Talk about showing your true colours.” Mr. Sunak’s campaign did not dispute the video and instead defended its content. Tory MP Jake Berry, who chairs the Northern Inquiry Parliamentary Group, also condemned the comments as he attacked Mr Sunak’s leadership campaign. He tweeted: “Publicly @RishiSunak claims he wants to raise the standard of the North, but here, he’s bragging about trying to channel vital investment away from deprived areas? “He says one thing and does another – from raising taxes to trying to block funding for our armed forces and now raising the bar.” And Foreign Secretary Lord Jacques Goldsmith said: “This is one of the strangest – and stupidest – things I have ever heard from a politician.” Read more: Liz Truss refuses to apologize for public sector pay policy Back What did Truss and Sunak promise during Sky News battle for Number 10? A source for Mr Sunak’s campaign said: “The rise is not just about city centers but towns and rural areas across the country that need help too. That was changed in the green paper and will follow as first minister though . “Traveling around the country, he has seen non-metropolitan areas that need better bus services, faster broadband or high-quality schools. That is what he will deliver as premier.” Mr Sunak’s allies have rallied around the Tory leadership candidate. Tees Valley Tory mayor Ben Houchen claimed Boris Johnson led the party to election victory with his pledge to invest in areas “that have been neglected at the expense of urban cities”. And Richard Holden, the Tory MP for Durham North West, attacked Labor for “draining investment from small cities, towns, suburbs, villages” while “washing away” in metropolitan centres. Defending Mr Sunak, he told Sky News: “Rishi Sunak tore up (Treasury orthodoxy) so that places right across from Cornwall to the Cotswolds to County Durham to Cambridgeshire are basically benefiting from a blanket change in the rules.” . Sky News analysis last year found that the majority of funding for Leveling Up was going to the most deprived parts of the UK. But many sectors in need missed the first round. Mr Holden added that over the years many deprived areas had “changed radically”. “You’ve seen a huge transformation in east London, yet they still get a lot more money per head than, say, rural areas like North West Durham, which really needs that support, or parts of the south west of England,” he continued. “What I want to see is the level going up across the country, not just concentrated in urban areas. “And that’s Rishi’s vision for the country, that wherever you are, you need the same opportunity to succeed, not just in these urban areas.” The comments come as Mr Sunak tries to make up ground against Foreign Secretary Liz Truss to win the support of party members who will choose the next prime minister. Subscribe to the Daily Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker Ms Truss is steadily leading in the polls, but last night saw Mr Sunak win over an audience of undecided voters following Sky News’ Battle for No 10 programme.
