My ancestors were bakers from the North East, reveals Johnson
BORIS JOHNSON revealed his ancestors were bakers from Darlington as he visited the North East to talk about his levelling-up agenda.
He was with Chancellor Rishi Sunak at the busy Teesport site at Middlesbrough, which will become the country’s largest freeport, with new rules to make it easier to do business.
In his Budget, Mr Sunak announced the Treasury will set up a northern campus in Darlington, dubbed Treasury North, in which 750 jobs will be relocated from the capital.
The town beat competition from Leeds, Newcastle and Bradford, raising eyebrows among some commentators who thought senior civil servants might prefer to move to a bigger city.
During his visit, the Prime Minister said the decision to move there was “fantastic”.
He added: “I can tell them [Treasury workers] it is a wonderful place.
“My ancestors actually were bakers in Darlington, you may be interested to discover. So they have been making the dough for the nation for a long time.”
The Chancellor said the Treasury would be able to attract “fantastic talent” to Darlington.
“We want to make sure we are showing the kind of government that we want to be, which is to level up opportunity across the country,” Mr Sunak said.
Earlier Mr Sunak revealed he enjoyed a stuffed-crust pizza for his post-Budget dinner.
Speaking to LBC radio, the Chancellor confirmed he had looked for a quick fix after arriving in the North East on Wednesday evening.
Mr Sunak said: “I had stuffed-crust pizza last night. It was very good. We got in very late to the hotel at 11pm.”
They have been making the dough for the nation for a long time. Boris Johnson on his visit to Teesport yesterday.