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Tory vows to cut City Hall waste
Katharine Barney and Pippa Crerar18.03.08
Boris Johnson today launched his election campaign with a pledge that every young Londoner would get discounted entry to the Olympic Games.
The Tory candidate claimed he would be "a breath of fresh air" for London and accused Ken Livingstone of wasting taxpayers' money.
He also hit back at claims by the Mayor that he was incompetent.
Mr Johnson said: "There are too many boroughs that at the moment are not benefiting from the Olympic Games. I would give young people from every London household a discount. It's not unreasonable given that they are all paying for the thing."
Mr Johnson claims his schemes can be funded by cutting back on Mr Livingstone's spending and says the Mayor has too many unnecessary staff.
Today he pointed to the fact that the council tax precept on a bandD home had risen by 150 per cent to £311 while Mr Livingstone had been in power. He said: "There is a lot of wastage at City Hall. It would be difficult to cut the precept now but there are savings to be made." Referring to the distinctive riverside building, he said: "In that great pickled onion, or glass testicle, there are now 730 people working in a building created for 400."
Responding to Mr Livingstone's comments-about his inexperience and inability to run London, he said: "That's a bit rich coming from the man who presided over the collapse of Metronet and a bit rich coming from the man who presided over the loss of millions of pounds from the LDA and still cannot produce a full audit trail."
Mr Johnson reiterated his pledge to put more police on the streets and said he would take over chairmanship of the Metropolitan Police Authority. He added that he would go along with Mr Livingstone's promise to extend the Freedom Pass - for the over-60s and those with certain disabilities - to offer free travel on public transport 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Mr Johnson, who today released a film by email claiming he was the man to bring fresh thinking to the capital, is campaigning with the message It's Time For Change.
He condemned Ken Livingstone as "out of touch" and "too tired", claiming the Mayor's passion had "withered".
Mr Johnson's attack comes a day after an Evening Standard poll put him 12 points ahead in the election race. The 43-year-old Tory will spend the next six weeks promoting himself as the young alternative to the 62-year-old Mayor.
His campaign angle, which comes directly from senior Tory strategists, bears a striking resemblance to US presidential hopeful Barack Obama's message "It's Time For A Change".
Reader views (10)
I feel for Ken this will be his 1992 moment. He will take a hit, but he will just about stumble over the line. Why do I say this? Because in 92 the Tories scared a generation of voters with images of the 1970s as a warning of a Labour government.
Now I'm part of the generation which is tempted to vote Tory, but every time I do I have flashbacks of the awful days. The queues of unemployed, of sleaze on an industrial scale, of inner cities burning in almost annual acts of destruction and mutiny, of the health service falling to pieces quite literally, schools crumbling and education standards in many London borough's a disgrace.
Sorry Boris. I'm your target generation. I'm a Thatcher child and I'm afraid its just not long enough for the scars to heal. So come May 1st I like many more in my age group will flirt with the idea of turning Tory, but the flashbacks I have mentioned to ensure four more years for Ken.
Better the devil you know...
- Dave, North London
Has Boris promised to stand down as the member of Parliament for Henley? It's nice that he has at least ONE of his homes in London, but we need a Londoner as Mayor, not a part-time bumbling carpetbagger. Boris still hasn't explained his £100m black-hole over the Routemasters, and goodness knows what else is lurking in a manifesto that the media (presumably all members of the same club as Boris)seem uninterested in scrutinising.
- Steve Rudland, Raynes Park, London, UK
I have been working and paying taxes in London for 10 years. In the beginning, before Ken, it was better. We need Boris Johnson: I like his style. It is brash, fresh and he is a worker. He stands for the London I knew 10 years ago! You cannot say that from the other candidates. Go away Ken Livingstone I say!!
- Georgie, Islington, London
My vote is Boris Johnson.
Why?
To be honest, I only have room to talk about transport here so:
1. Rising travel costs in London. Inflation busting? More like an inflation knock-out! The £25 congestion charge (which Boris has pledged to scrap if he gets elected) will not only target 4x4s (which themselves aren't a problem, but the overly cautious drivers of most of them are), but will also target large family cars and MPVs. Sorry Ken, but a low income family with 4 children cannot fit into a G-Wiz and a £6000 annual tax to own a Zafira is a bit ridiculous! I can't see Brian Paddick or Sian Berry scrapping this "green" gimmick either.
2. Bus routes change. Fact of life. However, London Transport (before ken) would let you know with a sign on a bus stop if this was to happen. Now you find out when the bus you are on takes an unexpected detour. Brian Paddick's bus improvement will be to make bus routes shorter, so you could end up taking 4 buses instead if one!
3. A few years ago, TfL spent millions on refurbishing the Routemaster buses, so they could be used in London for the next 20 years. Now they are all but gone, replaced by money-wasting uncomfortable death traps (more commonly known as bendi-buses)
This brings me onto the last point I will be making. Boris Johnson makes mistakes from time to time. At least he is honest enough to realise this and apologise. Ken doesn't!
It's time for a change.
- Aidan, London, UK
Boris has been incredibly high profile in his campaigning and has some really good serious concrete policies. If you actually followed politics in London or had a shred of intelligence you would know this. Back Boris on May 1st for the change London needs.
- Boris Backer, London
You will need to do better than this, Boris. Utterances like "It's time for a change" could apply to anything and are already old hat.
Start by recognising that our Ken has seen through some good initiatives and build on that. Party politics for its own sake bores us all, anyway.
Think "When will they ever learn...?"
- Peter Seekings-Foster, Muildenhall, Suffolk
Discounts for Olympic tickets is against IOC rules. Once again Boris doesn't quite get the grade A on his homework, but everyone laps it up.
- Darren, London
I didn't realise Ken was 62, no wonder he offers free travel for pensioners!
- Simon Carter, Maidstone Kent
Boris accuses Ken of having 'no new policies' We at least know his policies. We don't hear Boris's apart from gimmicks such as having motorbikes in bus lanes to frighten the cyclists.
Boris isn't 'fresh' anyway - he's the same old Thatcherite stuff dressed up as a clown.
- Victor, London, England
Come on Boris!
- Mr S. Port, London
