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Boris in crony row over his key aide's LDA role

Katharine Barney, City Hall Reporter
07.07.09

BORIS Johnson was accused of cronyism today after he appointed one of his key aides to the London Development Agency.

The Mayor announced his policy adviser Anthony Browne has been made one of 13 board members of the LDA.

The board, which spends £700million a year on business and community projects, is intended to be independent, but has only one Liberal Democrat and no Labour Party members.

Labour's deputy leader on the London Assembly, John Biggs, said: "Given that Boris's cries of cronyism helped him beat Ken last May it looks pretty hypocritical that he's now filling the board room with his own advisers and chums.

"The appointment of his right -hand man shows he has lost trust in the members he appointed only last year and the appointment of yet another Tory in a board without a single Labour representative shows a profound lack of confidence in his ideas and a retreat from his commitment to transparency."

Today the Assembly's economic committee criticised the board for a continuing lack of openness and agreed to write to Mr Johnson expressing concern over a potential conflict of interests.

But a spokeswoman for the Mayor said the appointment was normal procedure.

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