Rishi Sunak has been given a major boost in the Tory leadership race by winning the support of the figure seen as the party’s “Mr North”.
Ben Houchen, the influential mayor of Tees Valley, criticized the failure of the contest to ensure Boris Johnson’s pledge to “raise the bar” for the country is taken forward.
Mr Houchen is now backing the former chancellor as a “friend of the North” after pledging to extend devolution deals with possible future freedoms on business rates and education after 16 years.
He also praised the establishment of the Treasury’s first ever campus outside London, in Darlington, and Mr Sunak’s advocacy of free ports with tax cuts.
“I am delighted to give him my support to become the leader of our party and the next Prime Minister of our great nation,” Mr Houchen said.
“During his tenure, Rishi has shown unwavering support for Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool. As chancellor he played a huge role in the transformation of our region.
“Moving civil service jobs from London to Darlington gives local people the chance to build rewarding careers at the heart of government without having to leave the place they call home.”
Mr Sunak remains the favorite candidate of Conservative MPs ahead of further votes from Monday to whittle down the five surviving candidates to the final two by Wednesday.
But the winner will then be chosen by around 180,000 Tory members – who back Penny Mordaunt, according to a bombshell poll – before Mr Johnson leaves Downing Street on September 6.
Retaining the so-called “Red Wall seats”, wrested from Labor in 2019 in part because of Mr Johnson’s promises of equalisation, will be crucial to the party’s hopes of staying in power.
As chancellor, Mr Sunack introduced a £4.8bn Equalization Fund which allowed local leaders to fund small-scale projects despite huge council cuts.
However, the National Audit Office has criticized it and the separate £3.2bn Cities Fund for choosing projects that are too small to revitalize poorer areas and fail to analyze ‘what works’.
There has also been criticism of ‘pork barrel politics’, as funds from both funds benefit conservative areas – for voter-friendly schemes such as libraries and leisure centres.
The leafy area of Richmondshire – which falls in Mr Sunack’s North Yorkshire seat – has been given a higher priority for the Leveling Up fund than struggling Barnsley.
Meanwhile, the Treasury watchdog has concluded that free ports – which enjoy controversial tax breaks for “generating trade and jobs” – will fail to boost the economy as a whole.
On a visit to Teesside Freeport, Mr Sunack said: “I believe I am the candidate who can bring opportunity and prosperity to northern powerhouses like Teesside and restore confidence in government so we can rebuild our economy together .”
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