'Labour will axe Brexit next': Boris Johnson leads Tory backlash to Keir Starmer ditching 'Levelling Up' as ex-PM warns 'the drift backwards has begun'
Boris Johnson led a Tory backlash today after Labour ditched 'Levelling Up' - with the former prime minister claiming Sir Keir Starmer 'will axe Brexit next'.
The ex-premier warned 'the drift backwards has begun' and accused the new Labour Government of a 'lack of ambition and a failure to believe in this country's potential'.
He hit out after Angela Rayner, the new Deputy PM, dropped 'Levelling Up' from her Whitehall department as she vowed to ditch 'gimmicks and slogans'.
Since Labour's election win, Ms Rayner has taken charge of what was previously known as the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC).
But she confirmed today she was returning to its old name of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).
The 'Levelling Up' title was added to the department in September 2021 as part of Mr Johnson's mission to spread opportunity across the UK.
Boris Johnson led a Tory backlash today after Labour ditched 'Levelling Up' - with the former prime minister claiming Sir Keir Starmer 'will axe Brexit next'
The ex-premier warned 'the drift backwards has begun' and accused Sir Keir's new Labour Government of a 'lack of ambition and a failure to believe in this country's potential'
The ex-PM posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, this afternoon: 'Axing Levelling Up shows lack of ambition and a failure to believe in this country's potential.
'Labour will axe Brexit next. Then they will pointlessly whack up taxes. The drift backwards has begun.'
Tory MP Danny Kruger, an ally of Mr Johnson, challenged Labour to remain committed to the former premier's goal of spreading opportunity across the UK.
Asked on the BBC's Politics Live show if Levelling Up was now 'dead and buried', he replied: 'It looks like it.
'I look forward to Labour governing without any soundbites, that would be tremendous news for us all.
'The principle of Levelling Up was the right one. There was a great injustice in our economy, historically, going back many, many decades.
'The mission of Levelling Up was to spread opportunity everywhere. I hope Labour is committed to doing that and there was progress made in the last five years.
'I hope they're not chucking out all the good stuff that's been done hitherto.'
Mr Kruger, a former No10 aide to Mr Johnson, denied that Levelling Up was merely a slogan.
He added: 'No. It was very much more than a slogan.
'There was a whole range of commitments around funding but also around devolution, around industrial strategy, around investment in our infrastructure and in productivity.'
As she confirmed she was ditching Levelling Up from her department's name, Ms Rayne said today: 'A Government of public service means fixing the fundamentals to deliver for the British people.
'No more gimmicks and slogans, but the hard yards of governing in the national interest.'
Angela Rayner has dropped 'Levelling Up' from her Whitehall department as she vowed to ditch 'gimmicks and slogans'
Since Labour's election win, Ms Rayner has taken charge of what was previously known as the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC)
But Ms Rayner, pictured next to Sir Keir Starmer at a No10 meeting today, confirmed today she was returning to its old name of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Former Tory Cabinet minister Sajid Javid welcomed Labour's move to return the department to its old name
Jim McMahon, who has been appointed as one of Ms Rayner's ministers at MHCLG, said the old name had been 'firmly Tippexed out of the department yesterday' as part of an effort to 'refocus' on local government.
He told the BBC: 'Why that is important for me is Levelling Up was only ever a slogan, it wasn't a thing that people felt in their communities.'
The name change is the fourth in the department's history.
It started as the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in 2001, before becoming the Department for Communities and Local Government in 2006, MHCLG in 2018, DLUHC in 2021 and now MHCLG once again.
Before last week's general election, Labour figures had suggested the party would ditch the 'Levelling Up' title if it won power.
Ms Rayner told the Financial Times she was focused on 'fundamentals' and not 'a slogan'.
Former Tory Cabinet minister Sajid Javid welcomed Labour's move to return the department to its old name.
He posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, today: 'Welcome the move to bring back the name of MHCLG, an excellent department I was privileged to lead.
'Whether housing, social care or community cohesion, local government has a big role to play in tackling policy challenges.
'A small change, but a welcome signal of intent.'
Kim McGuinness, the Labour mayor of the North East, told Times Radio the idea of Levelling Up was 'absolutely toxified by the Tories'.
She said: 'I think it was absolutely toxified by the Tories. I think it's seen as a failed project.
'And I'm glad the term's gone because, as I said, for people in our region, it brings a grimace to their face.
'And I think that's a real shame because, of course, what we do want to see is that gap between North and South close and actually those inequalities in our own regions close.'
A Conservative spokesman said: 'The Conservative Levelling Up agenda has been transformative for towns across the country, giving communities that Labour took for granted when they were last in office the investment they deserve.
'Labour's decision to scrap Levelling Up will be a disaster for these towns, and their refusal to rule out clawing back £1billion of Conservative funding from local communities for Labour politicians to spend in Westminster puts the future of our communities at risk.'
