Navin Shah AM, Chair of the London Assembly, said:
“Today, the London Assembly celebrates its 20th anniversary. As a unique scrutiny body, with a direct democratic mandate, we serve as a check and balance on the high profile and powerful role of the Mayor of London. Once Ken Livingstone, and the current Prime Minister. Now Sadiq Khan. We have the statutory power of summons, we can veto the Mayor’s core policies and amend his budgets. There is no comparable institution anywhere else in the country, but our governance model has worked well for London and would work elsewhere in the country.
“Thanks to the Additional Member System, the Assembly has reflected the people it serves on a cross-party basis. We also mirror London’s diversity with ten female Assembly Members and eight from a BAME background. As the first British-Indian to hold the position of Chair, I am immensely proud of this achievement and what we have done in the last 20 years.
“Many of the successes of scrutiny are the prevention of potentially poor strategies, decisions and outcomes that we help to alleviate, but that the public will never see. But notable examples of our achievements include our influence ahead of the introduction of the Congestion Charge, our review into the 7/7 terrorist attacks, our role in shaping the London 2012 Games and more recently, our work highlighting delays and overspend on Crossrail. Collectively, as an Assembly, we will continue to grill London’s decision makers, criticise poor performance and demand action.
“As London emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, we face a crossroads in our recovery and the Assembly will have its ears to the ground, highlighting the issues that matter to Londoners. Our essential services face severe budgetary pressure and the Assembly will work tirelessly on behalf of all Londoners, so we don’t end up the ultimate losers. Further devolution to London from Government is essential and we are united as an Assembly in our call. The last 20 years have been a great success and we will continue to question, probe and shape London policy for decades to come.”
Notes to editors
- As well as investigating issues that matter to Londoners, the London Assembly acts as a check and a balance on the Mayor.
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