• Question by: Richard Barnbrook
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

First off, Mayor Boris, I would like to thank you for taking the race out of Rise. However, I would have liked to have seen the £300,000 go to St George's Day rather than to Rise, but that is neither here nor there. On to the question, thank you. It is my time, as the Chair has said. With regard to mini cab drivers I have two points. It is fascinating that 60% of illegal mini cab drivers are actually immigrants. I wonder what impact that has on other peoples' comments. I would like to put more emphasis upon the...

• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

Mr Mayor, can you update us on the registration of private hire vehicles from the Public Carriage Office? I know the previous Mayor had spent a lot of time and effort on that front. I know all the vehicles have been registered but we had not quite got to the registration of all the drivers. I do think this actually deals with the issue that is in front of us right now. This is something the Public Carriage Office has been undertaking for some time. They have registered all the vehicles which are private hire vehicles. They should be at...

• Question by: Len Duvall OBE
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

Two points, Mr Mayor: Are you aware that the majority of that increase in the precept that your party was so against supporting went on policing and community safety?

• Question by: Richard Tracey
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

I am sure, Mr Mayor, the boroughs will be extremely welcoming to this initiative of yours. Do you remember back in the late 1990s when the legislation setting up the Greater London Authority was going through the House of Commons, the Labour Minister talked about this being a slimline authority that was promised, with a light touch in London? Instead of that of course it became a group of interfering busybodies led by the previous Mayor. I guess you will agree with me that is why the council tax precept from here has gone so high and I trust you...

• Question by: Len Duvall OBE
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

So you accept that of any precept raised from the Council Tax payers of London in any year of the last administration of the last eight years about 80%, probably 85%, went on policing and fire services; community safety issues? Do you accept that? I am not sure if you do.

• Question by: Andrew Boff
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

Parking controls. We have a question down from one Labour Member saying that it is horrendous that they are different in one borough than another one. I personally see no problem with that. I am trying to get into the mind of a centralist; what it is that they think is important about having everything the same everywhere or everything appallingly bad everywhere is what actually it ends up as.

• Question by: Kit Malthouse
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

Mr Mayor, would you agree with me, however, that what has been proven time and again across London in terms of Council Tax and taxpayers' money is that more taxpayers' money does not necessarily mean better services? We have seen time and again, particularly across my constituency in West Central, in Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea and Hammersmith and Fulham, that very often the councils that tend to be at the top of the Labour Government's own league tables are those that charge the lowest tax and that try to get the best value for money. Any kind of connection between...

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

The question is: we are not elected as politicians to skip around in circles and love each other; we are elected to solve difficult problems. You gave an anecdote about Croydon. A similar anecdote might be about Bazalgette and the 30 years or so it took before a municipal authority was able to impose a sewerage system on London which resolved the 'great stink' as it was called. It was a massive public health problem; people died of typhoid and cholera. Finally people got their act together and realised you needed to have a strategic intervention. There are going to...

• Question by: Caroline Pidgeon
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

OK, but Bromley Conservatives are actually blocking the agreement to settle the costs on this and this is going to cost Council Tax payers in London more. Is this the value for money that you so often recite to us in this Chamber?

• Question by: Caroline Pidgeon
• Meeting date: 18 June 2008

What about your colleagues we are talking about here; do you support them?