Sadiq Khan calls for infrastructure spending push after report reveals £33bn could be added to economy

​Sadiq Khan has today called for a push in national infrastructure spending, after a report commissioned by City Hall revealed it could add a further £33bn to the economy extra per year by the middle of the century.

Jobs, tax receipts and housing would all be bolstered if the government increased its investment in some of the capital’s flagship policies such as the extension of the Elizabeth Line to Ebbsfleet in Kent; Crossrail 2 and continued investment in the Royal Docks, the report says.

Greenwood Strategic Advisers, which carried out the report, worked with City Hall to develop a computer model that analysed how the capital responds to investment and policy decisions.

The technology revealed that increased investment would create nearly 400,000 new jobs and 365,000 new homes, and would also bolster the Treasury’s coffers by adding an extra £10bn per year in tax receipts.

The investment would enable London to grow its population by 640,000 people.

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Khan said modern infrastructure, including new roads and railways, were vital if the UK wanted to remain a “global economic powerhouse”, adding that the whole of the UK, and not just London, should benefit from increased investment.

“As a country, we need to move from a system of underinvestment, low growth, reduced tax take and constrained public funding toward a new philosophy of sensible investment in high-growth schemes that deliver economic prosperity, more homes and higher tax revenues,” he said.

The City Hall report comes the day before the National Infrastructure Commission is due to publish its assessments of the UK’s infrastructure needs over the next 30 years.

Lucinda Turner, director of spatial planning at Transport for London, said: “It’s absolutely vital that we plan and invest in the next major transport infrastructure projects such as Crossrail 2 and the Bakerloo line extension to ensure we can support London’s continued growth.”

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