• Question by: Mike Tuffrey
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

Can I return to what the Mayor said about Simon Hughes' ideas for tackling what most reasonable people accept is a problem and just say how much we are looking forward to Mayor's Question Time in the next six months as Labour Members fire patsy questions to their candidate discussing their opponents' plans. On the specifics, is he aware of what Simon has actually said? He is not even back in Labour yet and he is spinning what was actually said. I have what Simon Hughes said here: he will work with Oxford Street retailers and Westminster City Council to...

• Question by: Jenny Jones
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

And for anybody who does not want to slog into the centre to do their shopping in crowded shops, what are you doing to promote local shopping centres?

• Question by: Jenny Jones
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

I do not support the idea of dropping the Congestion Charge over Christmas and New Year. In fact, I think we should be more concerned with limiting the number of cars because they actually slow the buses down that I travel on. I am very concerned that buses perform better over Christmas. Have you put on additional services and so on, or is it as normal?

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

Once people have been out and bought their Christmas presents and got them home, I would like to know what steps the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) is taking to ensure that people are sensible over the Christmas period in terms of protecting their homes and other places from burglary so that those Christmas presents will not go amiss?

• Question by: Samantha Heath
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

My question is to do with the public realm during the festive season, so it is related to shopping in a way, but to do with enforcing street drinking bans. Are you in favour of that over the Christmas period?

• Question by: Sally Hamwee
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

I am sure someone will ask you if that is your definition of consultation.

• Question by: Richard Barnes
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

My question is not on the budget but it is rather on your omissions. I note that in your update you have made no mention whatever to the expansion, or planned future expansion of Heathrow Airport. Now that your shoes are firmly underneath Tony Blair's bed, can we assume that you are accepting their Airport Development Strategy?

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

You are right, they are alarming.

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

The Council Tax is over 100% and you know that. So can we come to the budget? The Council Tax increase you talk about as being minimal but you have now hit the Guinness Book of Records with 103% by our calculations in four years. I do not think anybody has ever managed that in the Western world. But given all that, do you think it is credible when we actually received your budget papers to find in Transport for London (TfL) for this year that lo and behold having gone to all the trouble and talked about all the...

• Question by: Valerie Shawcross
• Meeting date: 17 December 2003

When you say involve the boroughs do I assume that you mean each of the five boroughs that have a very strong interest in that park? I think there are more Croydon residents who use the park and aspects of the park than Bromley or indeed Lewisham.