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

No, I understand your feelings about the Evening Standard. I think we probably all do. But do you not feel you owe it to the office of Mayor of London and not just Ken Livingstone, but to the office of Mayor of London actually to take some action to close this matter down one way or the other; to actually lance the boil and to deal with it rather than just let it run on for as long as the Evening Standard, or anyone else for that matter, wishes it to run on.

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

The police will be investigating, or not investigating as it happens, whether or not any criminal actions took place. As you know very well the code of conduct applies regardless of whether an alleged act was criminal or otherwise. I would just suggest to you that it is likely to run on and on because I do not doubt that either later today or by tomorrow the Evening Standard will be doing what it did last week and suggesting that what you said to us this morning is not the truth or the whole truth and so on. It will...

• Question by: Tony Arbour
• Meeting date: 10 December 2003

It is a mark of failure, is it not, Chairman, that the MPS is unable to say whether or not we are properly reimbursed for the true costs of these functions?

• Question by: Tony Arbour
• Meeting date: 10 December 2003

Chairman, will you not accept that the complaint about the Met having to carry out national policing means that ordinary policing in London suffers very significantly because of the extraction which is required from the boroughs. If I refer again to the question of President Bush's visit, and I am willing to lay odds that Blunkett will roll you over on that one as he has rolled you over on MPS funding in general, whilst the visit was taking place, crime in the suburbs increased. Crime in the suburbs increased simply because the Met was responsible for this national function.

• Question by: Tony Arbour
• Meeting date: 10 December 2003

During the past month Londoners have expended more than £4 million on the visit of President Bush, a man who I was happy to see visit London. I am sorry that the Mayor was unhappy to see President Bush visit London. We have not received reimbursement for that sum of money. When the matter was discussed earlier again this morning as to whether or not these things should be provided by a national police force, both you and the Commissioner raised the spectre of some all-powerful police Tsar who would be answerable to no-one if we were to have a...

• Question by: Tony Arbour
• Meeting date: 10 December 2003

• Question by: Tony Arbour
• Meeting date: 10 December 2003

• Question by: Mike Tuffrey
• Meeting date: 10 December 2003

As I understand, a little while ago there was no safety plan in place because it was not clear what New Year's Eve would constitute. At the Authority meeting yesterday I think Sir John implied that it remained the case. Can you update us? Have you been properly told what is planned for New Year's Eve and do you have a safety plan in place for that, given that today is 10 December, just three weeks away?

• Question by: Meg Hillier
• Meeting date: 10 December 2003

I would like to turn to New Year's Eve. This may be more of a question for the Commissioner, but last year we heard from one of the Mayor's advisers that New Year's Eve is not an event but a public order issue. What has your advice been to the Mayor about the policing of New Year this year and of the rugby celebrations on Monday? Are there any events you would strongly advise the Mayor not to proceed with because you would be concerned about not being able to police them safely?

• Question by: Tony Arbour
• Meeting date: 10 December 2003

Be that as it may, you made it quite clear yourself that there is no proper distinguishing between the allocation of these costs. You have merely suggested that there is a matching. I think that we ought to have known precisely what comes in and what goes out. Nevertheless, this really means that we really ought to be discussing once again the question of a national police force. I will tell you why it has become even more important this morning. Do you accept, as the Commissioner accepted in the response to the first debate this morning, that as he...