• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

It may be that there is more unanimity between you and me on Crystal Palace than on issues of trust. The only other matter that I wanted to raise with you on Crystal Palace is this! Do you accept that it is inevitable if we are going to get the best result at Crystal Palace that we look at a comprehensive package for the whole of the scheme? That is to say the replacement of the National Sports Centre, making sure that the running track and the indoor facilities are there, and making sure that that is linked to a...

• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

I will leave it at this point on the budget. It is interesting that with all that leverage in and extra money that we still manage to have such an enormous deficit. In the spirit of being full of goodwill at Christmas and so on, can I say that as far as Crystal Palace is concerned you know that I welcome the initiative that is taking place there and I know it is welcomed by people in Bromley. I am sorry that my flu made it impossible for me to be at the meeting arranged by Richard Caborn (Sports Minister)...

• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

Perhaps then it was the Government that was either naïve or disingenuous. I imagine you will be taking it up with the now Minister for London and see what extra grant he gives us to reduce the Council Tax burden.

• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

It is more than £0.03 though.

• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

How is it possible to reconcile the effect of your budget this year, that is to say the cumulative increase of 103%, with the pledge given by the then Minister for London at the time of the Referendum that the additional costs of having the Mayor and the GLA would not be more than £0.03 per week? Now that you are rejoining the Labour Party one of you must be wrong.

• Question by: Darren Johnson
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

I am not actually saying bung it on the Council Tax. I am saying is the money being spread in the right way. Is it being spent on the right things? Things like low-emission zones are not happening yet, it is still all talk, it is still all planned rather than really happening. Do you believe that things would happen quicker if you actually started spending some of the money you are spending on The Londoner on pushing forward and actually making these things happen rather than just talking about them?

• Question by: Andrew Pelling
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

It certainly will be a change for it to become the centre of south London, because obviously the history is one of it being at the margins of the five boroughs. I would like to ask specifically about the 50-metre swimming pool, which is important in terms of it being the only 50-metre swimming pool we have in London and therefore it is an important training facility for aspiring Olympic swimmers. Would your scheme to keep the facility open after March keep the 50-metre pool open? What prospects do you see in any new centre of being able to retain...

• Question by: Darren Johnson
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

But you have got statutory responsibilities and duties to make things happen, and make things happen in your strategies like a low-emission zone. Do you think Londoners believe that you should be spending the same amount of money on your Air Quality Strategy, your Biodiversity Strategy, your Waste Strategy and your Noise Strategy as you are on The Londoner newspaper?

• Question by: Darren Johnson
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

Environmental responsibilities account for a huge part of your statutory duties under the GLA Act and half of the statutory strategies in the GLA Act are directly connected with the environment and there are obviously huge environmental implications in the others. Do you think you have the balance right in terms of spending money on the environment and spending money on The Londoner newspaper, given that you are spending about equal on both?

• Question by: Eric Ollerenshaw
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

Mr Mayor, this is varying by one or two millions per week.