Paul Scully, the Conservative MP for Sutton and Cheam, is considering running in the 2024 London Mayoral election.
“I want to do the right thing by Sutton and London. If that means going to where the problems lay in London? Let’s see,” Scully said when asked if he would consider running for London Mayor.
“I don’t like posturing – I just like to actually get stuff done in whatever role that suits.”
Scully became an MP in 2015 motivated by his frustration with the then MP, Paul Burstow, stating that it was Burstow and his “lack of action” for the borough that prompted him to stand.
It was announced over the weekend that Sutton Council has been granted over 14 million as part of the Government’s Levelling Up Fund.
The funds are to be used to double the number of trains to Belmont; increasing accessibility to the area, particularly to the London Cancer Hub, which specialises in ground-breaking cancer research, treatment, and enterprise.
Sutton is currently served by a single track, meaning that only one train can travel on the line at any time, and the funding is expected to revive the original train track at Belmont Station, transforming the section of the route from a single to a dual track.
Plans include creating a shorter track south of Belmont, to allow trains to move onto the other line, meaning services can travel in both directions.
Scully said: “It really shows what happens when you work in partnership.
“The NHS Trusts, the Epson and St Helier Trusts, The Royal Marsden, the Institute of Cancer Research, have all come together with a a fantastic vision for Belmont, in terms of The Cancer Hub’s new hospital. This is going to really help push the case for people to invest in that vision.”
Scully believes it will be a good thing for his constituents, particularly from the nearby Shanklin Estate which “features in the list of the more deprived areas of not just London, but the country,” with the funding giving them better opportunities to connect to the rest of London for employment and opportunities.
Scully added: “It’s going to help take people out of their cars, in a far more effective way than Sadiq Khan’s pernicious ULEZ expansion, which is going to cause hell for 28,000 car owners and some.”
Ruth Dombey, Leader of Sutton Council, said: “It’s a step in the right direction for Sutton residents, who for decades have received the least transport investment per person in London.
“Alongside celebrating this brilliant win, we’ll continue to fight for Sutton’s fair share of public transport investment, and I now repeat my call to the Mayor of London to contact me to discuss how he can help to make Sutton a better connected borough and close the transport gap between inner and outer London.”
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: “Around 4,000 Londoners die prematurely each year due to the toxic air in our city, with the greatest number of deaths attributable to air pollution in London’s outer boroughs. In Sutton alone as many as 118 deaths are attributable to toxic air each year and the Mayor is committed to doing all he can to build a greener, safer London for everyone.
“The Mayor is regularly scrutinised by the Assembly and has recently explained in many hours of questioning why he has taken the difficult decision to expand the ULEZ in order to protect Londoners’ health and stop children growing up with stunted lungs.
“Sadiq has listened to Londoners throughout this process, which is why he’s announced the biggest scrappage scheme yet – £110m – to help the Londoners who need it most, including charities, low income and disabled Londoners, micro-businesses and sole traders. He has also announced a number of grace periods and exemptions to the scheme and one million more kilometres of bus network will also be added to support the ULEZ expansion.”
Featured image credit: Richard Townshend and UK Parliament via Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
