• Question by: Jennette Arnold OBE
• Meeting date: 03 June 2015

My first question is to Sir Bernard. Sir Bernard, I have quite a lot of information and so bear with me. On 22 May an article was published by The Guardian from Alex Stewart, an ex-police officer from Hackney, who had been awarded the MPS’s highest prize for a recruit in training. He has now left the force due to, as he says, disillusionment with the MPS following the previous rounds of cuts. He gave a stark account of the lack of morale and the huge strain that is on local policing teams at the moment. His comments are backed...

• Question by: Richard Tracey
• Meeting date: 03 June 2015

Thank you, Madam Chair. Probably the point has been raised by Deputy Chairman Arbour, but I was quite bemused, I have to say, that the Liberal Democrats had asked this question when they seem to have tried to delay the mandatory sentencing of second offenders with knives in the last Parliament.

• Question by: Tony Arbour
• Meeting date: 03 June 2015

Mr Mayor, I do not like to kick a man when he is down, but I am always willing to make an exception in the case of the Liberal Democrats. You have mentioned Nick de Bois’ attempts to introduce mandatory prison sentences for second offences of possession of a knife. Do you recall that it was in fact the Liberal Democrats who opposed that amendment?

• Question by: Kit Malthouse
• Meeting date: 03 June 2015

I just wanted to explore a bit more the interaction with gangs because you are right, Mr Mayor, that the anti-gang command or the new Trident Command, as it was, was launched at the end of 2011. Obviously, there would have been a bump in activity, arrests and convictions during the early part of 2012. Many of those gang nominals will have had, in my view, relatively paltry sentences and will be now re-emerging from the secure estate. What connection is there between them reaching the end of their sentences and re-emerging and this rise in activity, which may well...

• Question by: Valerie Shawcross
• Meeting date: 03 June 2015

Thank you very much, Mr Mayor. I am very glad to hear that neither of you feels complacent about this issue. There were 188 knife crime injuries in the two boroughs that I represent [Lambeth and Southwark] in the last year and so clearly something is happening. There was an increase in the injuries. With the end of the old knife crime strategy, we all are looking for an initiative and a new pressure and a refreshing of the pressure on knife crime. The Commissioner talked at the Police and Crime Committee about the impact of drugs and alcohol and...

• Question by: Victoria Borwick
• Meeting date: 21 May 2015

Victoria Borwick AM MP: A quick question. If I may just take you back to the other question that Murad [Qureshi AM] asked about taxis and being emission-free, can you just confirm that that is going to apply to all vehicles that that ply for hire?

• Question by: Victoria Borwick
• Meeting date: 21 May 2015

Victoria Borwick AM MP: A quick question. If I may just take you back to the other question that Murad [Qureshi AM] asked about taxis and being emission-free, can you just confirm that that is going to apply to all vehicles that that ply for hire?

• Question by: Victoria Borwick
• Meeting date: 21 May 2015

Victoria Borwick AM MP: A quick question. If I may just take you back to the other question that Murad [Qureshi AM] asked about taxis and being emission-free, can you just confirm that that is going to apply to all vehicles that that ply for hire?

• Question by: Richard Tracey
• Meeting date: 21 May 2015

Richard Tracey AM: Thank you Madam Chair. Mr Mayor, can I pursue with you the ramifications of this Supreme Court judgment about air quality. As has been touched on already, clearly Heathrow is a major offender, not simply with the area around Heathrow and the traffic that it generates, but also the amount of pollution that the aircraft throw out as they fly over London. Do you think that the Government is now going to be bound to take action over this Supreme Court judgment? Have you asked it whether it is seeking counsel’s advice on this judgment? It clearly...

• Question by: Nicky Gavron
• Meeting date: 21 May 2015

Nicky Gavron AM: Yes. Good morning. I agree with Assembly Members Jones and Qureshi that we need to expand the ULEZ and I am glad you are now considering that but we cannot wait. There are some measures that we absolutely have to have very, very soon. It is not just cars. I want a bit of a preamble; only one question. It is not just cars that use roads. It is schoolchildren. It happens to be National Walk to School Week. All over London now, more and more children are walking to school. It is a great initiative. However...