Norris promises “Safer London”
Conservative London Mayoral candidate Steve Norris today launches an advertising campaign promoting his platform of “Safer London”.
The “Safer London” message will feature on a series of 180 billboards across the capital, the first of which Mr Norris unveiled on Wednesday.
Nr Norris, who unsuccessfully contested the 1999 London Mayoral election for the Conservatives, promised at the launch of his election campaign last week that if elected, he would not stand again if London had not become demonstrably safer by the end of his term of office.
Labour’s mayoral candidate, the current Mayor Ken Livingstone, opened his campaign with the support of the Prime Minister last week. Mr Livingstone was originally elected as an independent, after he was turned down as Labour’s candidate in 1999, in favour of Frank Dobson.
His subsequent decision to run as an independent lead to his expulsion from the Labour Party. Mr Livingstone was only readmitted earlier this year, whereupon Labour’s existing 2004 mayoral candidate, Nicky Gavron – formerly Mr Livingstone’s deputy mayor – stood down to make way for him.
The latest polls put Mr Livingstone about 9 percentage points ahead of Mr Norris – a considerably smaller margin than that which saw Mr Livingstone elected in 1999.
Speaking at the launch of the new poster campaign, Mr Norris declared, “When I am Mayor, the buck will stop with me. I am determined to provide the political leadership to the Met to make London a safer city.
“People want a Mayor who is going to tackle crime seriously. In New York, Giuliani proved that the Mayor can provide the political leadership to get crime down. The Mayor has real power and sets the Budget of the Police”.
Mr Norris is promising to put hundreds more police officers on the streets and enforce zero tolerance in relation to illegal mini cabs, public drunkenness and vandalism.
Another veteran of the 1999 London Mayoral election, Green Party Mayoral candidate Darren Johnson, launched his campaign yesterday.
Mr Johnson declared, ” My vision for London isn’t just a sprawling metropolis to provide even more get rich quick schemes for property developers.
“My vision for London is for a green city, a vibrant city of urban villages, each with its own strong identity, strong local economy and quality local services within walking distance for everyone.”
Polling for the London Mayor takes place on June 10, along with elections to the Greater London Assembly, the European Parliament and a wide range of local authorities.
