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Melvyn,

It's obvious to most people with an IQ that Mayor Johnson is doing a great deal for Londoners. He has taken huge strides to rid City Hall of sleaze from the last administration, and he is making City Hall much more accountable. Furthermore, he has launched an admirable fight against knife crime and is taking a real interest in the futures of young people.

As regards the snow, he was hardly going to stay up all night catching it in Gordon Brown's y-fronts. This was the worst snowfall for 19 years. There would have been no point in spending vast amounts of money on snow clearing equipment when it was a one-off freak weather incident. There is a recession on and the money would have been best spent on more long-term projects.

Furthermore,the Boris supporters are not plonkers. They are people who grew sick and tired of the last administration's waste of public money and who looked to a Conservative Mayoralty to put things right.

As regards the silly Dispatches documentary, many people saw this for what it was - an attempt to drip lots of lefty poison over a very popular Conservative Mayor.

Boris is no thug. Far from it. Rest easy Melvyn, he's more likely to have gone around to Collier's house with a box of Milk Tray and a plant. London is safe and won't get kicked in the boroughs.

- Mellow Bird, London, 06/04/2009 18:04
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Mellow Bird and other Bojo Twits .. Boris doing a grand job?

What like when it snowed and all Londons buses came to a halt something that did'nt even happen in WWII!! And what was Boris Johnson reply to Parliament "I saw it was snowiing when I went to bed!" given that several days warning of an extreme snow event had been given he should have been on duty leading the fight to keep London moving!

Instead he went to bed - Boy what a plonker but it soulds as all hs supporters are plonkers given the way they support him.

As for the Dispatches programe well at least Boris now has street cred among gang leaders now they know his one of them! Not sure where that leaves victims of crime and their sometimes grieving parents?

Hopefully we will have a bad winter next year just in time for the election!!

- Melvyn, Canvey Island, Essex, 05/04/2009 15:56
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So what if the tape was made 19 years ago when the two men were probably in their twenties! It just sounded like Jeeves & Wooster letting off steam, rather than anything truly sinister.

In the end, Darius Guppy probably ended up going around to the Collier’s house in a floral apron and fluffy slippers to vacuum his lounge. There was probably nothing more to this colorful episode than that.

Mayor Johnson and his Conservative administration are doing a grand job in London. Many people think Boris is doing an enormous amount and he has shown real commitment to his election pledges, especially in regards to tackling crime and helping young people - we’ve seen some of the results of this at the city protests, where the police dealt with the crowds in a very admirable way.

Rest easy, we won’t be seeing Mayor Johnson dolling himself up in boxing gloves and thumping people in the boroughs. He’s more likely to wear a toga and recite poetry.

For the first time in years we have a very accountable, honest Conservative mayoralty. I’d say that’s exactly what this country needs, especially in these dark times.

- Mellow Bird, London, 01/04/2009 23:39
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#Keith Lonsdale

Publicly, not government, owned; there is a difference. Funded primarily in the market place through advertising and sponsorship. It was a deliberate decision of the government to establish it in this way. .

- Val Daniels, Mijas Costa, Spain, 01/04/2009 16:29
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"Is it remotely possible that something Boris said 19 years ago has absolutely no bearing on his current role?"

Once a thug, always a thug. The sooner London rids itself of Bozo the better.

- Marco, Notting Hill, 01/04/2009 10:29
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Val Daniels, Mijas Costa, Spain- Get your facts straight. C4 is not independently owned; it is funded by commercial activity, but IS owned by the British Government.

- Keith Lonsdale, Doncaster, 01/04/2009 10:04
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#Val Daniels,

Independent or not, Channel Four really has gone downhill. The Dispatches documentary was very clearly made by a bunch of socialist, aggressive, hate-filled fruitcakes. The programme screamed of a smear attempt and Channel Four made themselves look bad by airing it.

There wasn't one balanced viewpoint during the whole of the programme - just pure venom. The people who attacked the Mayor showed themselves up as being twisted with bitterness, spite and envy. They simply can't stand the fact that there is a new, more accountable Conservative administration in place at City Hall.

Not one of the interviewees seemed to have any enthusiasm for London in the slightest. They just wanted to bash everything. Furthermore, they revealed their own prejudices in front of a television audience. Shocking that some of them are in City Hall! Boris would be well advised to flea powder them before they infect Rosie Boycott's sprouts. Pest control should be top of the agenda.

- Fiona, London, 31/03/2009 15:29
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#Keith Lonsdale

Hello. We are talking about Channel 4 here, not BBC4. Channel 4 is an independently owned television channel and again, I repeat, has nothing to do with the Labour Party or the BBC. You only show your ignorance when you sound off before marshalling the facts. In future, if I were you, I would ensure brain is in gear before operating mouth, otherwise you end up looking stupid.

- Val Daniels, Mijas Costa, Spain, 31/03/2009 11:51
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Channel 4 is a state owned broadcaster, i.e. owned and controlled by Soviet Labour. Like the BBC, it is blatantly left wing and is hardly likely to show any of its political adversaries in a positive light.
All of its current affairs programmes need to viewed with a very critical eye.

- Keith Lonsdale, Doncaster, 31/03/2009 09:10
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Boris has always been a disgrace and always will be,he has no track record of managing anything,but realy the biggest disgrace is that the London public voted for him, and that fact speaks volumes to me.

- Kev, London-UK, 30/03/2009 22:52
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The name Darius Guppy brought back memories of his past. A quick look at Wikipedia produced this quote "The Daily Mail reports that Darius Guppy's acts of retribution are legendary since, according to Boris Johnson, he lives by a "Homeric code of honour, loyalty and revenge".
Boris, you have to forget your loyalty to friends such as this, inevitably they will cause you trouble.
Your own honesty has been questioned before, particularly the reasons why you left the Conservative front bench in November 2004. Your quote describing the allegations as "an inverted pyramid of piffle", still makes me laugh today.
Your Wikipedia entry has a section called Controversies, which runs to nearly 1800 words.
You may deny this particular colourful story, but there are plenty of others over the last five years or so that you cannot deny.

- Andrew, London W1, 30/03/2009 22:36
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Don't worry about Boris or Guppy; they would not face anyone, face on; they are the type to pay others to do their fighting for them.

Today you have white collar boxing; any age as well; Boris and Guppy could arrange all their fights in a boxing ring; man to man.

That is fair and legal; all you need is the guts.

- Mickyinlondon, london, 30/03/2009 22:20
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Channel Four's rubbish documentary proved utterly biased, and is clearly a complete witch-hunt against a very popular Mayor. Boris is still relatively new to the role and he has clearly got bucket loads of enthusiasm for London; that's why he was voted in. Interestingly, many people being interviewed in this documentary came across as a bunch of haters with lefty agendas who will stop at nothing than to drip their spite over the new administration. They seemed to find fault with anything and everything, simply because they can't stand the thought of having a Conservative Mayor.

Ken lost to Barbie because that's what Londoners wanted. It's time the haters got over it and went off to play with Ken's newts.

- Fiona, UK, 30/03/2009 21:24
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Boris is a disgrace. Everyone thought he would be 'a bit of a joke'. Well we know now don't we, and the joke is no longer a laugh.

- Richard, London England, 30/03/2009 17:54
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Typical Tory hypocrite, always shouting about law and order but has no respect for the law when it suits him. This man should resign.

- Mick, London, England, 30/03/2009 16:37
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Boris is a real disdrace, from threatening people with violence to runnung red lights and cycling on the pavements. Come bach Ken

- Keith Price, Luton, England, 30/03/2009 15:50
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I think you will find Despatches on Channel 4 is an independent television programme, and nothing to do with New Labour. If the Mayor wants us to believe there is nothing wrong in plotting to have somebody assaulted, and his supporters want to agree with him, that says rather more about him and his supporters than it does about Channel 4. When you listen to the tape, it appears his only concern is that somebody will find out about his hand in this conspiracy. It's time Boris stepped down from the chair of the MPA.

- Val Daniels, Mijas Costa, Spain, 30/03/2009 13:38
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Is it remotely possible that something Boris said 19 years ago has absolutely no bearing on his current role?

- Keith, Kings Cross, London, UK, 30/03/2009 13:33
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"Typifies NuLab dirty tricks"

It is the same Dispatches that broadcast a very critical anti-Livingstone piece by Martin Bright last year as well as providing a platform for the Standard's very own Andrew Gilligan, not considered a particularly prominent contributor to 'NuLab dirty tricks'. Still, why let the facts get in the way, eh?

- Tom, London, UK, 30/03/2009 13:16
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It's funny how Boris's spokesperson wants to decide for us that him potentially breaking the law, or covering up for someone (who turns out to be a convicted criminal) who intended to break the law is an irrelevance. I recall Boris trying to say that it was an irrelevance back when he was campaigning, somewhat ignoring that he was asking to be trusted as head of the MPA.

Now let's try to marry the spokesperson's casual dismissal with the hoo-haa Tory colleagues are making over expenses claimed by Jacqui Smith. Imagine it was her who had been involved in the attempt to hospitalise a journalist in 1990, would they be saying it was 'irrelevant'?

No, thought not.

- Nick, London, 30/03/2009 12:50
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Typifies NuLab dirty tricks. What would we find in Ken or Blah Blah Broon's past or what about what we know of Madlespin and all the other NuLab crooks?

- Andrew, Leaving the sinking ship England, 30/03/2009 11:01
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Boris clearly has a nice bunch of friends I wonder if he will come clean or wave his hands around and so it is of no real consequence.

- Mike Melbourne, Bedford England, 30/03/2009 10:48
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