• Reference: 2021/0487
• Question by: Caroline Russell
• Meeting date: 25 February 2021

A landlord of a pub in south London has written to me expressing concern about delivery companies potentially profiteering from the coronavirus restrictions pubs and restaurants find themselves under. According to them, just after London was put into a Tier 4 lockdown forcing pubs and restaurants to close to in-house dining, a mainstream delivery company increased its commission for new accounts from 25 per cent to 35 per cent. When VAT is factored in, this commission works out at 42 per cent per order, leaving pubs and restaurants relatively little to cover their outgoings as they struggle to stay afloat...

• Reference: 2021/0486
• Question by: Caroline Russell
• Meeting date: 25 February 2021

In your interim report, published in January 2021, on the economic future of the Central Activities Zone (CAZ), it states that: “The impact of COVID-19 is severe and far reaching, with a loss of almost a quarter of a million workplace jobs in London between March and the end of 2020, the highest fall in the UK.” In a real-world example of this, a CWU representative has written to tell me that as many as 4,000 BT desk-based jobs in London and the south east of England are being lost under BT’s plans to close sites and move work abroad...

• Reference: 2021/0485
• Question by: Caroline Russell
• Meeting date: 25 February 2021

In my research into the impact of the coronavirus crisis on the financial health of Londoners, the problem that Universal Credit and Local Housing Allowance doesn’t cover the cost of housing was raised. Will you increase your efforts to call for rent controls as part of the recovery effort?

• Reference: 2021/0484
• Question by: Caroline Russell
• Meeting date: 25 February 2021

I have been hearing from organisations including Fair Finance, Toynbee Hall and Impact on Urban Health about the impact that the coronavirus crisis is having on the financial health of Londoners. One of the worst effects is debt. What work is the London Recovery Board doing to support Londoners who have been forced into debt over the last year?

• Reference: 2021/0483
• Question by: Caroline Russell
• Meeting date: 25 February 2021

Recently The Independent reported that the Government has misled the UK music industry over the issue of visa-free travel for musicians to/from the EU. It was in fact the UK Government who rejected the EU offer of reciprocal visa free travel for touring musicians. UK Music in their 2020 report, Music by Numbers, found that the total export revenue of the music industry was £2.9 billion in 2019. Do you agree with me that musicians being able to tour the EU is vital for our economy and vital for cultural exchange, and will you call on the Government to get...

• Reference: 2021/0482
• Question by: Caroline Russell
• Meeting date: 25 February 2021

The Speed Compliance Tool is your interim alternative to Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) to control the speed of buses. Given that operators such as Uber are publishing data that shows they know the speeds that vehicles under their operator license are reaching – have you reached out to operators licensed by Transport for London (TfL) to encourage them to use similar technology to reduce road danger in London?

• Reference: 2021/0481
• Question by: Caroline Russell
• Meeting date: 25 February 2021

The Speed Compliance Tool is your interim alternative to Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) to control the speed of buses. What is the extent of the usage of this tool and can you provide a report that explains its operation?

• Reference: 2021/0480
• Question by: Caroline Russell
• Meeting date: 25 February 2021

Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) is a core part of your bus safety standard. How many buses in London now have ISA fitted, what proportion of the fleet does this cover, and how many do you expect to fit with it each year until they all have this system in place?

• Reference: 2021/0479
• Question by: Caroline Russell
• Meeting date: 25 February 2021

Constituents tell me that lights controlling traffic near the pedestrian crossing of St Paul’s Road at Highbury Corner are not functioning effectively and that queueing eastbound traffic is flowing through the crossing while the green signal is shown for pedestrians. Will you urgently check the performance of pedestrian crossings at Highbury Corner to ensure they are safe?

• Reference: 2021/0478
• Question by: Caroline Russell
• Meeting date: 25 February 2021

What are the chemicals Transport for London (TfL) is using to grit and de-ice London’s transport network, and what quantities of each chemical has been used in each of the past five winters?