London mayor Sadiq Khan has dealt a killer blow to plans for the Garden Bridge by confirming he will not provide the guarantees needed for construction to start.
Khan has written to the Garden Bridge Trust saying he cannot provide the financial guarantee needed for planning permission to be granted.
The letter follows a meeting between the Garden Bridge Trust and City Hall.
A review of the project released a few weeks ago said £37.4m had been spent and it would cost taxpayers £46.4m even if it was cancelled.
Dame Margaret Hodge, who carried out the review into whether the Bridge offered taxpayers value for money, said the project should be scrapped.
Khan said that “the continuation of the project will expose the London taxpayer to additional financial risk, both with regard to the bridge’s construction and its operation and maintenance”.
The controversial scheme has been criticised for some time and this latest move looks to kill off any chances of it being built.
Khan said: “Under the previous mayor, a considerable amount of London taxpayers’ money has already been spent on the Garden Bridge.
“I have always been clear that not a penny more of taxpayers’ money should be allocated to the project.
”Having assessed all the information available to me including the findings of Dame Margaret Hodge’s independent review, my view is that providing mayoral guarantees will expose the London taxpayer to too much additional financial risk.
“With planning permission due to expire this year, many outstanding issues remain, including spiralling construction costs and doubts around funding the maintenance of the bridge.
“The funding gap is now at over £70m and it appears unlikely that the Trust will succeed in raising the private funds required for the project.
“I am simply not prepared to risk a situation where the taxpayer has to step in and contribute significant additional amounts to ensure the project is completed.”
The bridge had been constantly criticised over the years due to its cost, ownership and and public access and dates back to former mayor Boris Johnson, who originally championed it.
