• Question by: Darren Johnson
• Meeting date: 13 September 2006

Are you not concerned that you are undermining your own message about reducing fossil fuel use and your call for higher charges on environmental taxes and so on? You are not at all concerned that you are contradicting your own messages and actually sending out some very, very mixed messages to Londoners?

• Question by: Jennette Arnold OBE
• Meeting date: 13 September 2006

Thank you for that. My last question ' and it is linked with fares ' is were you able to get Bob Crow (General Secretary, National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers ) to understand that more trains, more staff, Oyster availability, air conditioning, connections and a better service, fit for purpose, is the way forward, and there is really no sub-plot here?

• Question by: Jennette Arnold OBE
• Meeting date: 13 September 2006

I'm linking the £2.1 billion with the fares package increase. I believe that out of that we are getting some wonderful benefits for North London. The Mayor knows what I'm talking about, let him answer.

• Question by: Jennette Arnold OBE
• Meeting date: 13 September 2006

Can I then just ask a follow-up question relating to the fare increase? It was maybe a year ago when we had the last package [of increases]. Myself and John Biggs (AM) brought to you our concerns about how they disadvantaged young people travelling, especially young people in some parts of London; certainly in the part that I represent. Can you assure us today that TfL officers have actually planned for this not to impact on London's low income families, young people and elders? It is those sort of equality impact measures that I am looking for assurance on.

• Question by: Darren Johnson
• Meeting date: 13 September 2006

I support building links with Venezuela and, you are building links with President Chávez, but are there not better ways of forging links rather than trying to go about this, as you say, 'hugely complex deal' for cheap oil, when really should you not be focusing your efforts in terms of getting cleaner buses, rather than subsidised diesel?

• Question by: Roger Evans
• Meeting date: 13 September 2006

Fortunately some of us do remember what you say and it was you, admittedly speaking to the Socialist Campaign Group, so perhaps you were tailoring your message. What a change there has been since then.

• Question by: Damian Hockney
• Meeting date: 13 September 2006

What about people on day trips to London? Many visitors that I know that come to the UK, come for a day or two, for a conference, for meetings and then go on to Edinburgh, Glasgow, Birmingham. That is the market that is reading these pieces in the international press and is hearing that there are massive price hikes on public transport. That is not good for tourism.

• Question by: Roger Evans
• Meeting date: 13 September 2006

That came at the price of breaking your promise on fares when you told us that you would peg fares to inflation four years ago, before the Mayoral election. Are you promising to peg fares to inflation before the next Mayoral election? Is that the thing we should read into you comments towards the end of your statement earlier?

• Question by: Jenny Jones
• Meeting date: 13 September 2006

What I am trying to get at is, do you actually think this is a good use of police funds, when we are absolutely strapped for cash in some areas, and things are not being funded that I think should be funded, yet they are still capable of spending something like £27,000 to remove a few placards from Brian Haw. I have got no idea how much policing all the other protests is costing, and I am just curious if you really think that is a good use of police funds?

• Question by: Jenny Jones
• Meeting date: 13 September 2006

I do not know if you know that the Shadow Home Secretary, David Davis, actually is quoted as describing the law as a, 'contempt of democracy and a contempt of people's right to protest.' I think it is marvellous that we have got the Tories signed up to the fact that it is a crap law.