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Boris sets up full audit of City Hall finances
Pippa Crerar, City Hall Editor08.05.08
Boris Johnson announced plans to "clean up" City Hall today by setting up a forensic audit group to investigate its finances and cut bureaucratic waste.
The panel will recommend how the Greater London Authority can be made more transparent and accountable after the damaging "dodgy grants" affair.
It will also identify areas where savings can be made and resources redirected to the new Mayor's priorities, such as tackling youth crime.
The announcement will stamp Mr Johnson's authority on City Hall and draw a line under the troubles faced by the London Development Agency under his predecessor.
Mr Johnson said: "I was elected on a promise to provide Londoners with better value for money from their taxes. I am delighted to have recruited some of the most capable and experienced people in the capital to scrutinise recent performance at the LDA and GLA and suggest ways to prevent mismanagement and waste in future.
"We will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to ensure that the LDA and GLA deliver value for money to the taxpayers of London."
He has appointed former Sunday Telegraph editor Patience Wheatcroft, a non-executive director for Barclays, to head the audit panel. The financial probity of City Hall became a key election issue after it emerged that police are investigating seven organisations linked to Ken Livingstone's equalities and policing director Lee Jasper or his associates which were given millions of pounds worth of LDA funds. The review of the LDA will focus on:
• Allegations of mismanagement and corruption in the awarding of grants.
• How conflicts of interest are detected and recorded.
• The monitoring of grant recipients' performance in delivering what they promised.
• Suggesting new processes to guarantee probity and value for money.
During the campaign Mr Johnson accused Ken Livingstone of being wasteful with taxpayers' money and pledged to give Londoners "more bang for their buck". The review of the GLA will focus on:
• Publicity and advertising expenditure.
• The use of external consultants and agency staff.
• All areas where expenditure has grown since 2004.
• Suggesting areas where savings can be made without compromising performance.
Tension is understood to be high among the former mayor's 70-strong publicity and marketing team which is expected to be the first department to be streamlined.
Mr Johnson signalled in his first speech as Mayor that he would not tolerate unsupportive officials, warning they would be "humanely euthanised".
Ms Wheatcroft said: "It is crucial to understand how public money has been wasted or misspent in the past so that we can make sure that it doesn't happen again."
Other panel members include Tory council leaders Stephen Greenhalgh and Edward Lister and businessman Patrick Frederick while forensic accountant Andrew Gordon from PricewaterhouseCoopers will act as an independent expert advisor.
The panel will deliver an interim report to the Mayor within 30 days and a final report within 60 days.
Reader views (21)
Here's a sample of the latest views published.
Excellent Boris, put a bit of stick about. Can't wait to see the report - and oh, how many government ones are there? 3 or 4 a week at least. Boris' will be ready in 60 days - the government ones have been running for years. Yes, a new model.
- Watervole, Twickenham
This has been a long time coming...
- Wally, London
They could save a million just by cutting out the unnecessary 'free' newspaper which was nothing more than self-promotion publicity for Ken. Of course it wasn't free - we've all been paying for it as part of the spiralling cost of the Mayor's precept embedded in the Council Tax. Only free in the sense that London council tax payers had no choice over paying for it.
Boris is being too kind to them, too diplomatic. There needs to be a clearing out and a fresh start with new and more trustworthy people.
- Richard Shaw, Pinner UK (London Borough of Hillngdon)
Wow - a forensic audit! Hope it has big teeth and has the power to reclaim any moneys that are deemed to br mis-spent!
However - Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minster still echo in my mind !
- Ian Heritage, Melbourne, Australia
So Boris is not actually going to do anything constructive yet but will look for ways to exploit any microscopic failings he can find with his predecessors work. "Better value for money" is a rather meaningless statement, what he really means is if I can axe it I will and by spending less we will be spending less. This may mean roads don't get fixed, people are forced to live on the streets and no affordable housing will be built, but who cares I'm alright and we will be spending less.
- Malcolm Parker, Hook, England
Good on you Boris!
- Jill Eitrem, Cambridge
I an one of those deeply depressed by the activities of Red Ken. I run a small business in London carrying out service work. Livingstone and his fines have made my life a misery. May Red Ken and this cronies spend many a year reflecting on what they could have done to help the poor working classes of London instead of hindering them all these years. You took the wrong course Ken and now your going to pay for it like all tyrants should.
- Mike, London
I was hoping Borris might be able to set up an office which coordinates central London roadworks and tempory traffic light systems. These mismanaged roadworks cause massive disruption and stress around the capital as well as excess pollution and misery. This all reflects an image of chaos and desperation on motorists and pedestrians alike. All the roads that have been narrowed by livingstone to increase congestion should now be reinstated.
- Greentea02, london uk
@ Edward Trevor.
Tell me I am fascinated as to how you suggest a City the size and complexity of London should be run with out an over-seeing body? London Borough Councils are inept at providing London wide needs such as housing, the environment and transport. I guess you were not here from the 1980s to experience a couple of decades of inaction and passing the buck.
Councillors are basically extensions of nimby lobbyists as we have seen in countless important London-wide developments in the past.
I don’t know about you but most people who live in a small room handing over large amounts of cash to content landlords would love to have a simple apartment of their own and did you know we can now build in such a way that most apartments don’t even take up much of our precious ground space.
Most councillors would oppose it because they are empowered by those with a voice, yes namely nimbys, I mean existing house owners.
If those are just the problems with housing, imagine the problems with transport and dealing with our impact on the global environment! You idea of borough councillors is frankly laughable and actually dangerous.
In the end all our problems are linked together and require an understanding of those links to combat them. A cluster of disparate boroughs is not an efficient way of dealing with that.
- B Marsden, London
Margaret Thatcher talked tough and acted tough. That is why she has the affection of both sides of the political divide. Please don't think that the people on the streets of London are stupid. Boris needs to act decisively or just be another chancer, and an another expensive overhead paid for by the people of London
- Robert Sylvester, Fulham, London
Well done Boris. 3 cheers.
- Alan Schon, United Kingdom
An excellent start! Patience Wheatcroft is an inspired appointment and has fought for propriety and efficiency in her columns through the New Labour years.
This audit gives great heart to all of us who foresee the same treatment when Brown & Co get euthanised - whether humanely or, in their case, hopefully not!
- The Essex Boys, UK
The GLA is an extra tier of government not needed any more than the old GLC had any purpose. Under the Livingstone regime it spent millions on his personal publicity, grants to bodies not accepted by the majority of Londoners and interfered in planning which should be the prime responsibility of the London Borough Councils.
Councillors should not be paid as it is voluntary and no one is forced to stand. Many councillors have jobs or pensions and they should not expect the public to pay for their chosen spare time activity. There is a team of paid officials and two are not needed.
- Edward Trevor, Formerly Sutton LB
£2m was allocated to Kennedy Scott to teach people from the ethnic "minority" the knowledge of London, why was this money allocated in the first place when there is absolutely no barriers for anyone wishing to become London taxi drivers?
Thank god for Boris, London feels like a huge depression has finally been lifted!
- Steve, london
I am glad Boris is going to take an axe to all Ken's greedy cronies but I want to see the money back too.
- Mikko Takala, Drumnadrochit, Scotland
Looks like Boris means business!
- Brandon Thomas, London UK
How wonderful if should be proved that Mr Livingstone and his cronies had been naughty boys with the GLA's pennies.
- Col, West London
It'll be interesting to see if the wastage is any more serious than any other public body, and whether the conflicts of interest are any more serious than those of MPs and their side-jobs.
- Fresh, London
Ms Wheatcroft has said she will also identify any corruption and impropriety that has gone before the arrival of Mr Johnson. I sincerely hope so as I think it certainly needs to be done, if only to ensure that any serious wrong doers are not able to continue in public office and may even be punished.
- Helen, norwich
That almost sounds as though he's trying to run a government department as efficiently as a private company, it'll never work, the civil servants won't allow reform as they might have to do some work.
- A Loafer, Tooting
Excellent news, catch the rats in their own traps!
Hope your both sweating - Livingstone and Jasper.
- Mr Poperdom Pete, Bexleyheath
