• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

Are you a high powered person?

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

If we summarise your answer, which was essentially that you did not answer the question, you may get round to appointing an environmental adviser - which was your number one priority - some time between now and Christmas I guess. Munira Mirza is your adviser I believe on cultural issues

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

Can I first of all congratulate you on your appointment of Neale Coleman as a Section 67 officer. He will, I am sure, give you continuing excellent advice on the Olympics, as he did to your predecessor. A few simple questions: The first question is about your announcement in your manifesto in your campaign that the environment was a prime priority for you and yet you have not yet appointed an environmental adviser. Is there a reason for this? Was it again a mismatch between the rhetoric and the reality of the Mayoralty.

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

OK. Could you advise us whether Mr Lewis has yet taken up his appointment and signed a contract with the Authority?

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

Let us put it slightly differently. The problem I have is that, as I understand it, you have appointed people and you have delegated things to them. Last time we were in this Chamber we found that you had delegated your planning powers to Mr Clement, which is fine and lawful. If one reads the job description for Mr Parker it appears that you are delegating virtually everything that is not nailed down to him, so you could go off on holiday for four years and he would be doing the job for you. Is that not somewhat inconsistent with...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

I think that is rather a reckless statement but it forms part of the record of the meeting. Can I move on then to my final question - the Wizard of Oz question I call it - which is that you have designated all these things - Final question is that you have delegated these powers but you have also designated people with certain positions. You have the Chief Deputy Mayor or whatever the designation is for Mr Parker, but the reality is that he is no different from Simon Fletcher who was the previous Mayor's Head of Office. He...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

Although of course in the meantime you have expended potentially £500,000 on consultants to fill the gaps that the absence of those people - You have appointed people as consultants whose annual costs would be £500,000 at least. Can I move on then.

• Question by: Jennette Arnold OBE
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

Have you made all of them and clarified their roles?

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

Let us move on to some of the more interesting questions then. I am sure you would agree with me that a Mayoral adviser would probably have a desk, an office, a PA, an email account, would speak on your behalf at conferences, would write articles as your adviser and may even be designated Deputy Mayor. Where is this leading? There is such a person who is exercising all of those functions; they write articles in the newspapers - The Sunday Times last weekend: Sir Simon Milton. He was intended to be an adviser. Just for the record, for this...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

I am not a QC but I have read my Ladybird Book of the Law! My concern is that the reality is that he is a guiding hand if you like behind your administration and that in all reality he is acting as an adviser. It is simply a device to try to get around the law and it is quite embarrassing and quite unbecoming of an administration committed to openness'. Can I move on to the next question which is about -