Bitter war of words as Sadiq Khan calls Rishi Sunak 'desperate' in attack on housing

The government has announced it is spending £200m to build new homes on brownfields in the capital - but the Mayor of London has pointed out that Mr Sunak gave in to rebel Tories on housing targets

Sadiq Khan accused Mr Sunak of saying "desperate nonsense" (

Image: DAILY MIRROR)

A bitter war of words has erupted between London Mayor Sadiq Khan and Rishi Sunak, with the Prime Minister accused of holding 'desperate nonsense'.

Today the government announced it is spending £200million to build new homes on brownfield sites in the capital. Mr Sunak has gone on the offensive, accusing the Mayor of London of 'not delivering' the homes London needs.

But Mr Khan shot back: "Are you the same guy who gave up on his house building goals? Because I was the one who started building more social housing than the rest of England put together, exceeded your affordable housing goals and built more homes of any kind than since the 1930s. This is hopeless nonsense."

Ministers are under pressure to up their game after years of misery for millions of Britons. Last year Mr Sunak bowed to Tory pressure over housing targets - a move Labor said 'killed the dream of home ownership for a generation'.

Rishi Sunak tackled housing (

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PA)

After a local election earlier this year and a tough by-election last week, Mr. Sunak has realized the dangers he faces if he does not act.

Today No10 announced it would inject £150m into London's boroughs, bypassing the Greater London Authority.

Downing Street has blamed the Mayor of London for soaring prices, which means a person working in central London has to spend an average of 17 times their income to buy a house, double the national average . He said his new plan will see the government "working directly with other local leaders in the capital".

No10 has boasted that it is on track to build a million homes this Parliament, having already delivered more than 2.2 million since 2010. The latest Tory manifesto claimed the government would build ...