PM in deep end over his pool’s electrics upgrade
RISHI Sunak came under fire yester- day as it emerged his new indoor swimming pool uses so much energy that his listed manor house’s electricity supply had to be upgraded.
As hundreds of public pools face closure due to soaring bills, Labour MP Richard Burgon said the work – understood to have cost tens of thousands of pounds – highlighted ‘gross inequality’ in British society.
But sources stressed that the
Prime Minister – who spoke to reporters including the Daily Mail’s Jason Groves as he flew to a summit in San Diego yesterday – received no special treatment in having the work done at his £1.5million constituency home in North Yorkshire, and is believed to have footed the bill himself.
Fitness enthusiast Mr Sunak – who
as chancellor spoke of how he regularly completes a workout before starting work at 7.45am – was given permission for the 3 ft pool in 2021.
That was despite complaints from councillors that the proposed structure near Northallerton resembled ‘a large bungalow’ rather than the ‘typical, stone-built agricultural building’ it was designed to resemble. But yesterday it emerged that a ‘substantial’ amount of electrical gear supplying the complex – including a gym and tennis court – was installed due to energy needs.
A new connection to the National Grid had to be run across open fields, the Guardian reported. It said the work was estimated to have cost tens of thousands of pounds - in addition to the ongoing cost of energy consumption for the pool, put at £13,000 a year.
There is no suggestion the PM used his status to receive preferential treatment from Northern Powergrid. No 10 declined to comment.