He claimed to be on the side of the poor today, but Boris Johnson is more interested in keeping his billionaire backers happy.
A third of the UK’s super rich have donated £50million to the Tories since 2005 – and 10 of our 151 billionaires have given cash since Mr Johnson revealed in May that he wanted to be Prime Minister, Labour analysis found.
Meanwhile, his government is handing them almost £100billion in tax breaks and in corporate giveaways over the next four years.
Mr Johnson, whose party has made £70billion of public spending cuts since taking power in 2010, said he wanted to “close the opportunity gap” between regions and end “injustice”.
He said: “I passionately believe that around this amazing country talent, genius, flair, are evenly distributed, but opportunity is unevenly distributed.”
Mr Johnson told a Confederation of British Industry conference he was concerned about areas where “lives are a decade shorter than elsewhere”.
Since 2010, the gaps in life expectancy between the wealthiest and poorest parts of the UK have widened, with a woman in Blackpool dying on average seven years earlier than one in Camden, North London.
Inequality has also widened, with 44% of the country’s wealth owned by the top 10%.
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Households in the South East of England own a combined wealth of £2.46trillion, compared with just £368billion in the North East.
It came after Mr Johnson announced a delay in plans to cut corporation tax from 19% to 17%, saying he would spend the cash saved on the NHS.
Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell said: “It is a bit rich Johnson finding a conscience over the inequality he and the Tory party have created.
"It is obscene these billionaires are buying access and tax breaks.
"We know whose side Boris Johnson is on – the billionaires, bankers and big business.”
Labour claims since 2010 the Tories have given £86billion to corporations and the super rich via cuts in the headline rate of corporation tax.
This is on top of £5.6billion in inheritance tax giveaways and £1.2billion from cutting the additional income tax rate to 45p.