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Monday 29 August 2016

Since Sadiq Khan has been elected...

It is only recently since the London Mayoral and Greater London Assembly (GLA) elections but one u-turn, one untruth and one borrowed policy have taken place!

We saw Sadiq Khan elected, but within days we saw him announce that it was going to be difficult to deliver the number of new affordable homes he promised. Being the Mayor of London is a privilege and was never to be easy, but to give up on possibly the most important policy area so soon is very sad for many residents who live in Ealing.

Sadiq Khan then reneged on his fares promise. He said: “Londoners won’t pay a penny more for their travel in 2020 than they do today.” But the truth of his policy has been uncovered recently when it appeared that he will only freeze part of the transport fares, excluding many commuters using travelcards. In the election Liberal Democrats said it was not possible to freeze the fares and so it is obvious that many Londoners have been fobbed off with a policy helping only some of those who were given the impression everyone would benefit.

Policy borrowed: Liberal Democrats welcome the announcement from Transport for London, that a one-hour bus ticket will come into effect in September. Though Sadiq Khan is happy lapping up the glory for the one-hour ticket, it was not his idea. Liberal Democrat mayoral candidate Caroline Pidgeon campaigned on the policy since 2009.

Liberal Democrats want to see transport policies that make it easier for people to travel and cheaper for those who work on lower than average wages such as cleaners who have early starts before many of us have woken up.

It was great to see Caroline Pidgeon taking over as Chair of the Transport Committee. She is the most experienced GLA member and she has taken a great interest and solved many local issues in Ealing borough.

London Liberal Democrats will be pushing for more openness in City Hall, where the Mayor works. We have seen that the previous Mayor chose to hide a report which demonstrated that over 400 schools in London are located in areas that exceed EU limits for nitrogen dioxide. The Mayor and the Greater London Assemby need to make sure that they and Ealing Council take action to improve our air quality. Anything else and we are harming our children and the lives of 7 million residents.

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