• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 06 April 2005

As well, I take it, as the paper trail that would show how the decision was arrived at. I would be grateful for that.

• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 06 April 2005

If that is the case, will you first of all undertake to make all Board documents available to Members of the Assembly? Secondly, would you agree that the best solution in that event would be to make membership of the Board subject to open advertisement so that we can be satisfied that members of the Board are appointed on a merit test?

• Question by: Bob Blackman
• Meeting date: 06 April 2005

I understand your concern to try to pour scorn on the contents of this poll, which is probably the most comprehensive survey of Londoners and crime ever carried out. The fact is that two-thirds of people believe that crime is increasing. That is the perception of people out there in London, and this is right across London, this is not in a specific area or specific little pockets that we have looked at but right across London. The reality is that people believe your policies are failing; they want to see change, and they want to see a positive change...

• Question by: Bob Blackman
• Meeting date: 06 April 2005

In our survey, 45% of people are less than satisfied; they are dissatisfied with what the police are doing to actually combat a crime or do something about following up a crime once it has been reported. This is under your direct control. What are you going to do about it?

• Question by: Bob Blackman
• Meeting date: 06 April 2005

Those are interesting statistics, no doubt. You will no doubt be aware that in our capacity of scrutinising this process, we have carried out a major survey across all the London boroughs with 110,000 people being surveyed, including those areas which have Safer Neighbourhoods and those that do not. However, the perception is rather different when it comes to the number of police: 76% of people either say they have seen the same number of police or less. Can you tell me why you think they are wrong?

• Question by: Elizabeth Howlett
• Meeting date: 06 April 2005

I am asking for your opinion.

• Question by: Elizabeth Howlett
• Meeting date: 06 April 2005

That was not what I asked. I asked you whether you approved of the 2% cap that was put on the Resource Allocation Formula and approved by the Chairman of the MPA and the majority of the MPA members. Did you approve of that, which cut 70 officers from the communities in London? Would you have preferred the pure RAF, as it was called, to have been funded from this large budget, which would have given an extra 70 officers?

• Question by: Bob Blackman
• Meeting date: 06 April 2005

This was mailed out to people at random across London in an appropriate way, in very much the same way as many other surveys are carried out by polling agents.

• Question by: Elizabeth Howlett
• Meeting date: 06 April 2005

I know that in fact you were consulted about the Resource Allocation Formula (RAF). I would be really surprised if you did agree with the 2% cap which was put on the formula which actually cut 70 officers that could have been recruited and put into various Borough Operational Command Units (BOCUs) across London. This would have cost £2.6 million. In fact, I moved that this £2.6 million should have been found from this huge budget of £2.5 billion and the full RAF should have been implemented as opposed to RAF with the cap. What was your position on that?

• Question by: Graham Tope
• Meeting date: 06 April 2005

My point is why do you want to focus in on just one? Why do you focus just on Associated Newspapers and not at all on the Desmond publications? It could not have anything to do with them being the only newspapers to support you in your recent contretemps with an Evening Standard journalist?