London Assembly blocks Livingstone’s budget
A historic vote in the London Assembly has seen a coalition of opposition parties join together to reject Ken Livingstone’s proposed budget for the capital.
Conservative, Liberal Democrat, Green and UKIP members banded together to reject the London Mayor’s proposal that his office would receive a 7.2 per cent increase of the council tax share.
Though Mr Livingstone was securely re-elected for a second term, the number of Labour members in the assembly was cut by two. This means that a coalition of the other parties can for the first time block his budget.
The final budget is due to be approved on February 14. If neither Mr Livingstone or the coalition back down, the budget could be thrown out.
Commenting on the result, chairman of the budget committee, Conservative member Andrew Pelling, said: “Today the London Assembly not only bared its teeth, it used them. It tore strips off the Mayor’s budget. The result – lower council tax for Londoners without any cuts in frontline services. This has been a good day for the assembly and a good day for Londoners.”
The motion passed by the Assembly calls on the Mayor to “produce a final budget which significantly reduces the Mayor’s proposed rate of increase in the GLA precept”. Suggested economies include scrapping his free newsletter – The Londoner – which the opposition parties view as a propaganda sheet, cutting expenditure on the proposed Thames Gateway Bridge, and a recognition that bus fares will generate more income than predicted.
They are keen to note though that they “fully support” the overall budget for the Metropolitan Police Authority.
Leader of the London Assembly Liberal Democrats, Graham Tope said: “This vote sends a clear warning message to the Mayor that Londoners will not put up with further tax rises above the inflation. Unless Ken Livingstone brings his tax rise down, he will be in real danger of his budget becoming a corpse in a Valentine’s Day massacre.”
And Green Party member Darren Johnson added: “The Mayor should not be throwing money at the Thames Gateway Bridge when this is a matter for a public inquiry and should not be wasting money on the Londoner.”
Earlier in presenting his draft budget, Mr Livingstone said that “investment in safety”, notably the police, accounts for three quarters of the GLA precept increase. In terms of the extra cost to Londoners, he said: “Almost seven out of 10 Londoners are in bands A to D and the resultant increase in the council tax precept from the current proposals would be a modest 33p a week for a band D household. For the 44 per cent of households in bands A to C the increase would be less than that.
“But do I reaffirm my commitment that by the time we get to the final budget that the precept increase will be less than 30 pence a week.”
