Archive for October, 2008

People’s Question Time

Published by Simon on October 13, 2008 in LondonSays. 0 Comments
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The details for the latest People’s Question Time have been released and can be found below:

Time: 7.00pm – 9.00pm (doors open at 6.00pm)

Main Hall
Bromley Civic Centre
Stockwell Close
Bromley BR1 3UH

How to get there

Tickets to attend People’s Question Time (PQT) are free, but you should request your ticket(s) in advance.

How to get tickets

Your opportunity

People’s Question Time is your chance to ask the Mayor of London Boris Johnson and members of the London Assembly what they are doing for the capital and its people. This PQT meeting will be chaired by the Bromley & Bexley London Assembly Member – James Cleverly.

PQT happens twice a year. The four main issues it will focus on are policing and safety, transport,environment and the London Olympics Games in 2012. There will be an opportunity at the end to raise other issues not already discussed. Each section will be allocated approximately 20 minutes.

Your Mayor

The Mayor makes long-term plans for London’s transport, planning, culture, sport, environment and economic and spatial development. His plans set out priorities for organisations from boroughs to bus companies. The Mayor also sets budgets for the Metropolitan Police Authority and London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority, Transport for London and the London Development Agency.

Your London Assembly

The London Assembly examines and questions the Mayor on his decisions and strategies and holds him to account for his actions. It may also amend the Mayor’s budget if two-thirds of Assembly Members agree to do so. The Assembly also investigates important London issues – from the emergency response to the 7 July bombings to the state of London’s transport services.

Your questions

If you would like to put a question to the Mayor or London Assembly at PQT, you can fill out theonline form or else email your question topeoplesquestions@london.gov.uk. Some questions submitted in advance will be asked on the night. Any questions not answered on the night will be responded to afterwards.

Ken’s Met

Published by Simon on October 13, 2008 in LondonSays. 0 Comments

200810131015.jpgWhilst Ken Livingstone harbours ambitions to be Mayor once again his ’shadow administration’ continues to provide good copy for the media. On this occasion he has waded into the mess which is Sir Ian Blair’s departure:

Ken Livingstone has defended the right of London’s mayor to dismiss the Met Commissioner, while still criticising the manner of Sir Ian Blair’s exit.

Mr Livingstone said elected mayors must have the right to hire and fire chief constables and their senior officers.

But he told the BBC that Sir Ian was undermined by the media and his record in office did not justify his removal.

[BBC]

Personally, I fail to see what Mr Livingstone gains from such an intervention - as much as he tries to angle his words to be critical of the Mayor’s approach, he basically backs granting him further powers, and supports Mayoral intervention. Is the former Mayor trying to have it both ways?

Boris’ Met

Published by Simon on October 3, 2008 in LondonSays. 1 Comment

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The resignation of Sir Ian Blair as Metropolitan Police Chief comes five months after Boris Johnson first expressed dissatisfaction with the direction of London’s policing. As such it shouldn’t be seen as a surprise. However, the nature of the resignation, and the surety of purpose from Mr Johnson as he takes over as Chairman of the MPA, marks a final step in his politicising of crime in the capital.

During his evolution as a candidate and then in his early days as Mayor, Mr Johnson spoke repeatedly of his belief that there should be a “democratic mechanism” to hold the head of the Met to account. His push for the introduction of crime maps was greeted wearily by the Met, and his focus on crime tonally different from that of Sir Ian.

Having watched crime fall in New York under the tenure of Mayor Rudy Giuliani, the Mayor outlined his strategy as: “that if you tackle petty crime and deal with the so-called quality of life offences, then the serious crimes begin to diminish”.

The resignation of Sir Ian marks a tectonic shift in power from the Mayor and Home Secretary (who actually holds the hiring/firing power), and from the Labour Government to the Conservative administration in City Hall.

Sir Ian has set a dangerous precedent, tacitly admitting that without Mayoral backing his post is untenable, but doing so without a democratic mandate in place to hold the mechanisms of London to account for such a move. His successor will have a difficult task in tending to three masters - the Home Secretary, the Mayor, and the popular opinion of Londoners.

The Government must urgently move to fill this deficit, ensuring that the Mayor’s power is not allowed to trample unchecked over the supposedly independent police chief. We have covered moves to ensure that this is done earlier on this blog.

On Monday the Mayor will chair the MPA for the first time. One can only imagine that the pre-published agenda will be changed in light of yesterday’s moves. Meanwhile, the Mayor must work with Sir Ian until Dec 1st, and then his Deputy, Sir Paul Stephenson, until a successor is chosen.

Relations with the Home Secretary, cool at best, will now be increasingly difficult. Jacqui Smith has already attacked the Mayor over Sir Ian’s resignation.

Boris Johnson has shown a sure touch in his attitude to crime. In his campaign for Mayor he realised that it was many Londoners’ number-one concern and forged policies which would address the “slow creep” of small crime. He has increased numbers of community support officers, transport police, introduced crime maps, and made genuine efforts to understand and tackle knife culture.

The Mayor should be applauded for these efforts. The clean sweep which Sir Ian’s departure offers is a chance for the Mayor to shine further. However, the politicisation of the Met should be stemmed, and the Mayor’s powers in this area not allowed to run unchecked.

A significant plank of the Johnson election platform lay in the belief that Ken Livingstone had overreached himself and relied too much on his own judgement and that of a coterie of advisors. Mr Johnson should remember that accusation and ensure that he lives up to the standards which his own campaign tacitly endorsed. The Met must remain apolitical and Mr Johnson’s dealings with it transparent.