London's Great Outdoors: A Manifesto for Public Space

If you Google our city with a satellite map you will see how the world beneath you is divided into two categories. There is private space - that is, homes and gardens occupied by individuals and their families. However, more than half of the London landscape is shared space including roads, parks, canals, rivers, squares, piazzas, malls and monuments. This shared space is a vast and complex environment in which millions of perfect strangers must move, meet and negotiate. It is, therefore, critical that we invest in them so that London's great outdoors is fit for the future.

I want to work with the boroughs and other bodies to shape and breathe new life into London's public spaces. This means creating a network of well designed and enticing outdoor areas, which increase our city's popularity as a place to live in, visit and invest.

My ambition is to work with the boroughs to revitalise public space to make a big difference to London's quality of life. A great outdoors encourages walking and cycling, breathes life into densely populated areas, and provides inspiring places where people want to stay. Through bold improvements we can help create:

• A beautiful city where the spaces between the buildings can inspire, excite and delight visitors and Londoners alike.

• A more humane and healthier city where pedestrians and cyclists feel as if the space belongs to them as much as to cars.

• A prosperous city that can compete nationally and internationally attracting and fostering businesses that bring jobs and growth.

• A connected city that brings together diverse communities and neighbourhoods with unique character.

• A safer city where people are free from crime and fear of crime.

• A London with spaces that are fit for a world city, suited to changing lifestyles and responsive to the challenges of climate change.