• Question by: Meg Hillier
• Meeting date: 26 February 2003

I am talking about the pedestrian crossing, not about the route. I am in favour of the route, I'm not asking about that. I was asking about shouldn't you have been talking to the council earlier than you have been?

• Question by: Meg Hillier
• Meeting date: 26 February 2003

Third time sort of lucky. A slightly more detailed answer than the other two times that I've put this in, Ken. It's disappointing about the quality of the answer because people locally are very concerned. All we've got from your office, or from you, when I've asked this question before is broad statements about the general principle. What you're actually saying is nothing much here. I appreciate, and we understand, that Hackney Council has a role here but, when planning a bus route, it would surely be sensible to be discussing with the council from day one the location of...

• Question by: Samantha Heath
• Meeting date: 26 February 2003

There are two there. Is it up to Tooting Broadway or is it up to Morden?

• Question by: Samantha Heath
• Meeting date: 26 February 2003

Going back to the tax on south Londoners, the issue that I wanted to get in on is the little bit about the regeneration potential for Mitcham and Streatham. There are real issues for Streatham and south London with ELLX not going ahead and issues around the Thameslink. But you have on the table or you have on the feasibility table, issues around the extension to the Tramlink. I was wanting to know how important is regeneration going to be in your decision-making process about where the Tramlink extensions to Croydon are going to be. There are areas between, say...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 26 February 2003

In the unlikely event that you win a second term, but more likely in Nicky's first term, I hope that there will be a greater focus on developing the potential of rail in south London. Can we have a commitment from you that you will start the process to take that forward? Could you perhaps say something about this vexed issue for south Londoners of integrated ticketing and whether you're going to make some real progress with that as well? It's an area which would make enormous paybacks for Londoners, to get a single ticket, single zone system. It could...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 26 February 2003

It's obviously in the nature of oppositions to oppose but I'm left wondering whether the Conservatives would be happier if Crossrail wasn't built because it would allow them to attack you for perceived under-performance. So, the Labour position on this is that we desperately want to see Crossrail built and we want to see the East London Line built and we think that there is an opportunity in the delay on Thameslink to engineer it - and I think this is what you're saying - so that it better suits the interests of Londoners. We want to work with you...

• Question by: Mike Tuffrey
• Meeting date: 26 February 2003

No, there's never an election coming. Could I ask you about the financing? All these schemes require financing, that's the big issue. One of the reasons, I suspect, that you're always so nice about Susan Kramer is that you still feel guilty about stealing her ideas for bond finance on the Tube, which the Government didn't listen to. Can I invite you to steal another good idea from the Liberal Democrats which is that we should be moving to a land value based taxation scheme? These big transport schemes give a windfall gain to people who happen to own land...

• Question by: Mike Tuffrey
• Meeting date: 26 February 2003

I'm grateful that Andrew made the first point which I wanted to make, namely that we should be grateful to Valerie for putting this question down to drawn attention to the failure of the Labour Government to fund and get these schemes moving.

• Question by: Andrew Pelling
• Meeting date: 26 February 2003

I think it's rather funny seeing our colleagues opposite making a half-hearted effort to represent south London, bearing in mind that the Labour Government's transport plan has betrayed the commuters of south London, particularly after the decision announced yesterday to close the West Croydon to Guildford service. You people have betrayed the people of south London with the mythology of a transport plan that's delivered nothing for the people of south London. I will take no lessons from the Labour Party about what's going on in south London. I do hope, Mr Mayor, that you will look into the issue...

• Question by: Samantha Heath
• Meeting date: 26 February 2003

So, my issue now is timing, Ken. What you said very clearly is that there are those two that look " Are you prepared to take two or is it only one extension and which have you budgeted for?