• Question by: Roger Evans
• Meeting date: 18 January 2006

You say you consider the Mayor a friend. You will have heard of the phrase we use of being a critical friend. We use it about the Assembly quite often with relation to the Mayor. What about industrial relations on the Underground over Christmas? Do you feel you could have handled that better?

• Question by: Peter Hulme Cross
• Meeting date: 14 December 2005

The answer is no, in other words.

• Question by: Peter Hulme Cross
• Meeting date: 14 December 2005

Then you do agree with this point.

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 14 December 2005

You have answered the question about a mad or a bad Mayor, I suppose there is a further question which is about a Mayor who attempts to implement a programme which is so manifestly stupid that it should be stopped but the Assembly and other bodies do not have the capacity to do that. How are you going to deal with that issue?

• Question by: Jenny Jones
• Meeting date: 14 December 2005

I disagree with you so strongly here, and I have told you this before. I think it would have been your legacy for London as regards democratic procedures if you had actually strengthened this body, regardless of whether or not they all agree with you all the time. In cases of corrupt Mayors in the future, it would be to your benefit as a Londoner to make sure that the next Mayor, whether or not he or she is corrupt, actually has some sort of democratic accountability and I think we can use it here. You would have been better...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 14 December 2005

I must say that I do not agree with your view that the Assembly Members are such chronic under-performers. I know that you think that I do a fantastic job on a good day, but it does seem to me that even opposition Members can provide a constructive role. I think one of the effects of your comment about the Assembly has been to raise the game of the Assembly visibly, certainly to my perception. My question though is about the mad or bad Mayor issue. The problem I have is that your submission to Government is based on your...

• Question by: Darren Johnson
• Meeting date: 14 December 2005

Given that you have one in person in office holding the executive position, just one person with one range of political views, is it not even more important than any other institution that you do have a broad spread of opinion whether they agree with you or not in the body that holds you to account and scrutinises you?

• Question by: Tony Arbour
• Meeting date: 14 December 2005

To assist in preparing our press releases on the precept, will you spell out to me in very simple terms ' because we are very simple people on this side ' that the total increase in the percentage bill coming from this place is going to be around 5.5% in the precept which you say is going to be the capped precept, if you like, and a further 8% on the Olympic precept, meaning that the increase from this building is going to be in excess of 13%?

• Question by: Bob Blackman
• Meeting date: 14 December 2005

I note that we are having a policy of brinkmanship in terms of releasing this budget report, which is not particularly helpful for those of us who are involved in the scrutiny on Thursday. Do you accept that the precept is likely to go up by £50 at Band D overall?

• Question by: Roger Evans
• Meeting date: 14 December 2005

Given that you are making that extremely robust message which will be welcome for Londoners, will you urge them to cross the picket lines if a strike is called?