• Question by: Jennette Arnold OBE
• Meeting date: 22 June 2005

Jennette Arnold (AM): I have a number of constituents in Waltham Forest who are concerned about the LDA's strategy to boost tourism for north London boroughs, including Waltham Forest. Whilst they welcome that, they would have liked, if you like, greater participation in it, because one of their fears is that the richness ' especially the industrial history richness ' of that borough will not be featured, and what we might get is a David Beckham trail, which really does not do that borough justice. It is about, really, following on from what you have said, we need more transparency...

• Question by: Valerie Shawcross
• Meeting date: 22 June 2005

That moan from me was to celebrate the fifth anniversary of my being evicted from an LDA board, because they do not allow Assembly Members to observe their meetings.

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 22 June 2005

Although this may seem a local issue, it does raise very important questions about the responsibilities of developers. My understanding is that the developers are actually able to frustrate their own permission in a way that would possibly get them off having to provide this link, which would be a ridiculous outcome. I would emphasise that to have the stations not integrated into a single unit so that people can walk freely between the two without having to go through ticket barriers is pretty bloody important for Stratford. Otherwise, half to two-thirds of the objective of the Stratford International stations...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 22 June 2005

Do you think that there is a risk that this could be a Trojan horse that helps to undermine the need to invest in the NHS in areas like Tower Hamlets, or on the other hand, do you think that this is an initiative that should be welcomed and copied in other parts of London?

• Question by: Elizabeth Howlett
• Meeting date: 22 June 2005

I could not agree with that more, Mr Mayor. I find this absolutely incredible. I have nothing against improving health care by whichever method, but this particular Medecins du Monde, they go and work in third-world countries, where governments and localities cannot provide decent health care. Tower Hamlets is well-known as being one of the poorest boroughs in the country, with the highest mortality rate in London, so why on earth did the Department of Health not target this borough? It is too little, too late. They have set up spearhead PCTs, given extra resources, but it is already far...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 22 June 2005

Do you feel we have a role, as civic leaders in London, to play a part in monitoring that? Clearly, it implies that there are people falling through the net, and the fact that that happens is unacceptable.

• Question by: Jennette Arnold OBE
• Meeting date: 22 June 2005

Can I just say that I support the point that you make about the Assembly picking up this item. Certainly it is something that is in front of me in my role as Chair of the London Health Commission, and I think all the support that this area of work can get, the better. Would you agree with me that this is absolutely not the first time that we have seen initiatives like this, especially initiatives working around community of interest? What we have here is not just the community of Tower Hamlets, but it is communities ' mainly asylum...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 22 June 2005

I should emphasise that I am speaking outside of the brief of my group on this issue, which I think I am elected to do from time to time, although, given that I am the Whip, I suppose that is quite serious. The easiest way of asking this question is that we have an initiative on climate change, in which we are blazing a trail in the UK. We have transport initiatives in which we are blazing a trail, in a lot of ways. I think through our economic development powers and through promoting the Olympics, for example, we are...

• Question by: Mike Tuffrey
• Meeting date: 22 June 2005

[Mike Tuffrey (AM):] From our side, can I warmly welcome the announcement of the CCA ' the vehicle that you are using and, indeed, the corporate participation. I was tempted to observe that it is a pity it has taken until your sixth year in office to do this, but was afraid you would accuse me of being negative, oppositionist, and other terms of endearment, so I will not. [The Mayor:] That is most probably true. [Mike Tuffrey (AM)]: Instead, I would like to focus on looking forward. I notice that the press announcement was actually cast in the future...

• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 22 June 2005

Finally, I understand most of the funding for the Climate Change Agency (CCA) will come through the London Development Agency (LDA). Clearly, it will be a big priority on the environment. I just want to be reassured that other smaller projects on the environment are not lost sight of whilst they concentrate their minds on this. I was thinking in my mind of the capacity-building programme that has been designed for training on sustainability for local authorities this financial year.