Councils in the south east of England are calling on the Government to provide more infrastructure investment after new figures suggest the region is falling behind London.

South East England Councils say financial returns to the Treasury are now less than the capital’s.

They say London made £21.6bn more net ‘profit’ for the Treasury than the South East over the past three years, a reversal of the long-term trend.

The changing fortunes are down to different levels of public spending, including transport and enterprise or employment investment, according to the SEEC.

The group’s chairman Nicolas Heslop said:

“The South East is not getting the opportunity to deliver its full potential.

This is a wake-up call to Government that our profitability is at risk if we cannot secure the infrastructure investment the South East needs.”