Steve denounces Boris Johnson over £40m wasted on non-existent Garden Bridge
Steve Reed has slammed Boris Johnson for wasting over £40 million of public money on a bridge that was never built. While he was Mayor of London, Johnson promoted the Garden Bridge as a vanity project that would leave his mark on the capital. He recklessly over-rode established public spending rules and ordered millions of pounds to be thrown at the project even though it never had any serious chance of getting built.
Steve wants the scandal to be investigated so there can never be a repeat. He said:
Over £40 million of public money was wasted on the Garden Bridge without construction ever beginning. Staff moved freely between City Hall and contractors who benefited from the funding. It’s time for a full investigation into this scandal and the role-played by the former London Mayor Boris Johnson.
Steven Reed is Labour MP for Croydon North and Shadow Minister for Children and Families. In 2018 his private member’s bill on reducing violent mental health restraint became law. In June 2019 he launched Labour’s civil society strategy outlining radical plans to empower citizens and communities.
Steve chairs the Cooperative Councils Innovation Network, co-chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group for London, was Leader of Lambeth Council 2006-12 where he led the council’s children’s services to become best-rated in the country and pioneered the public-health approach to tackling violent youth crime. He worked in publishing for 16 years and was an elected trade union branch secretary.