• Question by: Graham Tope
• Meeting date: 26 March 2003

This is not the time for us to debate the effectiveness of the Press Complaints Commission but you have said this morning, again, that the behaviour of the Evening Standard was, I think the word you use was a "disgrace". I think it is qualitatively different to taking pictures of you in your swimming trunks on a beach which demonstrably was of interest to some of the female Londoners, around this table anyway. That is qualitatively different to what we are here debating this morning. Are you actually saying that you believe the Evening Standard to have acted disgracefully and...

• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 26 March 2003

I have only two short and final points. From my understanding of what you have said, no one other than your partner and your Chief of Staff -- from the GLA's offices or contacts -- had any involvement in the words that were actually in Mr Hedge's initial statement?

• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 26 March 2003

I quite understand your distress at family and close friends being involved. You have made the point about the apparent discrepancy and growth in detail between accounts that were given in first newspaper reports and subsequent ones. In hindsight, do you feel it might have been better to have given us the detailed statement that you have today when you came before the Assembly on 19th June?

• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 26 March 2003

It is not from any fight as far as you are concerned that would have triggered the call?

• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 26 March 2003

Do you know why the police were called?

• Question by: Bob Neill
• Meeting date: 26 March 2003

Can you help us? Who called the police?

• Question by: Jenny Jones
• Meeting date: 26 March 2003

I would just like to point out to the Lib Dems that you need some evidence before you refer the Mayor to the Standard Board for England and evidence is exactly what we do not have. Now short of evidence from other people who were at the party, short of the Archbishop of Canterbury coming and saying: I was at the party and I saw it, then we simply do not have evidence to refer the Mayor to the Standards Board for England.

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

The second thing that you did on June 19th was to up the ante and turn this into a question of media ethics. Certainly I would have some sympathy with what you say in terms of Londoners wanting to see the back of this and getting to the bottom of it. But you have chosen to raise this to one of media ethics but are refusing then to take the two obvious routes open to you; one is the Press Complaints Committee and the other is to sue. Would you accept that Londoners who would like to get to the...

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

Effectively people are saying that you are lying to us and that matter should be investigated.

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

Thank you chair. Attention is focussed on the 18th and 19th May. I actually think we should be focussing on the 19th June when you came and voluntarily gave us a statement essentially on the assault, the man handling, and disappearing trick. You denied those but the position we are faced with today is that there are others who are saying other things. Now if they are telling the truth you are lying to us. It is very difficult for us to form a judgment of that. We are not, as my colleague has said, a kangaroo court. That is...