Responding to Ed Balls' comments on the Garden Bridge yesterday and the Chancellor's statement that it would be 'deeply depressing' to question the project, Jonathan Isaby, Chief Executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said:
"Ed Balls is absolutely spot on to question whether the Garden Bridge is value for money, especially after taxpayers were originally told it wouldn't cost them a penny. It is not 'deeply depressing' but entirely sensible to ask whether a glorified tourist attraction is the best way to spend millions of pounds of taxpayers' money, especially when serious consideration needs to be given to additional crossings in east London.
"The Garden Bridge serves little purpose as a bridge and there remains scant evidence of a plan for the costs of long-term maintenance. It increasingly looks like a vanity project and politicians shouldn't be scared of being presented as killjoys by saying so."
Andy Silvester, Campaign Director of the TaxPayers' Alliance, has previously described the Garden Bridge as a "white elephant", joining critics including former Transport Secretary Lord Adonis and Ross Clark.