London’s poorest risk becoming the new “left behind” The depiction of the capital as a gilded metropolis conceals the highest rate of child poverty of any English region. Nine years ago, as it prepared to host the 2012 Olympic Games, London basked in its global pre-eminence. The city had overcome postwar decline to become a political, economic and cultural powerhouse. “Effectively New York, LA and Washington all rolled into one,” as Neil O’Brien, the Conservative MP, observed that year. But London’s ascent would not last. In 2016, the UK voted to leave the European Union and the capital was marginalised as the only English region to back Remain (with a 60-40 split).