PM appoints Neil O’Brien as ‘levelling up’ adviser

LONDON: Boris Johnson has appointed a backbench Tory MP to act as his adviser on delivering his “levelling up” agenda, Downing Street has said.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said Neil O’Brien, the MP for Harborough, would be working with government departments on developing policies for a forthcoming “levelling up” white paper.

“His role is going to be to work alongside departments to develop the policies that sit within that, the bold policy interventions which are going to help improve opportunity and boost livelihoods across the country,” the spokesman said.

“We are making multi-billion pound investments to transform the country’s prosperity and spread opportunity already. “We have the opportunity to go further and that is the work Neil O’Brien has taken up.” The move will be seen as a signal of Mr Johnson’s intention to consolidate the Tories’ grip on the the so-called “red wall” seats which they took from Labour in the last general election.

In a statement Mr O’Brien said that levelling up had been a “real passion” of his for many years. “After such a challenging year, there has never been a better time to unite and level up the country,” he said.

“It’s absolutely crucial that we bring opportunity to every single part of the UK by making sure our spending, tax, investment and regeneration priorities bring about meaningful change.”