The Mayor's Budget - the experts' view
The Mayor is responsible for a budget of nearly £23bn, which is used across the Greater London Authority (GLA) functional bodies, including Transport for London (TfL), the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC).
Part of the annual budget scrutiny process, led by the London Assembly Budget and Performance Committee, is to consider whether policing performance is improving, but also whether the resources provided through the 2027-28 budget are likely to deliver measurable improvements in outcomes, legitimacy and value for money for Londoners.
In addition, given that fares income is the largest single source of income for the GLA Group, a key focus of the annual budget scrutiny process is whether transport demand can be forecast accurately, and also whether TfL’s budget can remain financially sustainable under a range of plausible demand and revenue scenarios.
Tomorrow, the Committee will speak with policing, transport and financial experts about how policing should be benchmarked, and how TfL should manage its budget in light of changing travel habits.
Guests include:
Panel 1 – 10am – 11:30am:
- Professor Matt Ashby, Associate Professor, Dept of Security and Crime Science, University College London (UCL)
- Professor Ben Bradford, Director of the Centre for Global City Policing, UCL
- Lawrence Morris, Former Director of Strategy, HMICFRS
- Ian Wiggett, Associate Director, World Policing Advisory
Panel 2 – 11:40am – 1pm:
- Professor Stephen Glaister, Emeritus Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Imperial College London
- Tony Travers, LSE Department of Government and Director of LSE London
- Michael Roberts, Chief Executive, London TravelWatch
The meeting will take place in the Chamber at City Hall on Tuesday 20 October 2026 at 10am.
Media and members of the public are invited to attend.
The meeting can also be viewed LIVE or later via webcast or YouTube.
Follow us @LondonAssembly.
Notes for editors:
- Neil Garratt AM, Chairman of the Budget and Performance Committee, is available for interview.
- Find out more about the work of the Budget and Performance Committee.
- Read the agenda in full.
- As well as investigating issues that matter to Londoners, the London Assembly acts as a check and a balance on the Mayor.
For more information, please contact Tony Smyth in the Assembly Media Office on 07763 251 727 or [email protected]. For out of hours media enquiries please call 020 7983 4000 and ask for the Assembly duty press officer.