Sadiq Khan 'melodramatic' over Tube funding - minister

The government has said it is proposing financial help for Transport for London (TfL) to deal with the funding crisis caused by coronavirus restrictions.

TfL is seeking its fourth government bailout and has warned it needs £500m to keep services running until April.

TfL's current government deal runs out on 11 December, and mayor of London Sadiq Khan says he has been forced to draw up radical cost-savings plans.

But minister for London Paul Scully said Mr Khan was "being melodramatic".

TfL's main source of income is fares - unlike many other major cities - and these have plummeted since the first lockdown. While passenger numbers have returned to 70% of pre-pandemic levels across all TfL services, the figure is only 63% for the Tube.

Last month Mr Khan warned that an entire Tube line could have to close if TfL's funding crisis was not addressed by the government.

Writing in the Evening Standard, Mr Scully said the government was not happy the mayor had been conducting negotiations through "spin and press releases".

Mr Scully said: "There is, and will be, more than enough money to keep services running at their current levels, and there is no basis whatever for Khan's threat to cut them.

"In the next deal we will commit, as we have before, to making up TfL's loss of fare revenue from Covid. TfL's main source of income is therefore guaranteed by the State - at a cost so far to national taxpayers of more than £4bn."

In response to Mr Scully's comments, Mr Khan said: "Whilst any news of potential funding is welcome at this late hour, it's vital that ministers get round the table with us as soon as possible to explain what a deal will involve and to understand how it will impact the lives of Londoners.

"TfL have already set out options for raising £500m, but the government has yet to provide any meaningful feedback on these proposals."

He added: "With four days left until the current funding deal expires, the clock is ticking."

By BBC London transport correspondent Tom Edwards

The good news is that it seems a deal of some sort is on the table and the government is committed to helping TfL with its funding gap created by the pandemic.

The bad news is there seems to be considerable bad blood between the government and the mayor and that could sour things.

Sadiq Khan has been shouting from the rooftops what no money would mean for London transport and that has gone down very badly in government.

Longer term there is also a significant sting in the tail - to get a long-term deal the mayor will have to identify new revenue streams or savings up to £1bn.

That could perhaps mean tax rises or road charging or an outer-London congestion charge or cuts to concessions or pension reform.

All those options are not straightforward practically or politically for the mayor.