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Emily Thornberry, Jennette Arnold and Harriet Harman |
Harman: Too risky to have Boris as mayor
Tory candidate turns on deputy Labour leader over walkabout in stab vest
A CONSERVATIVE Boris Johnson as London Mayor is too big a risk for voters to take, deputy Labour leader Harriet Harman warned when she visited Islington on Tuesday.
Ms Harman launched her attack on Mr Johnson, who lives in Islington, while drumming up support for Labour Mayor Ken Livingstone’s re-election campaign.
She said: “I’ve been in the Commons all the time Mr Johnson has been an MP and he’s never shown any interest in London. He doesn’t speak on London and why should he? He’s a member of Parliament for Oxfordshire.
“I don’t think Mr Johnson has a commitment to London as a diverse city, which is part of its great strength. He wants power for the sake of it and would be a risk that Londoners shouldn’t take.”
But Mr Johnson hit back by saying that what London needs is new “leadership, energy and fresh thinking” to deal with street crime.
He added: “Ms Harman, it will be remembered, was seen on the streets of London wearing a stab vest, which tells you everything about Labour’s failure on law and order.
“I should also point out that Emily Thornberry, who represents the Islington street I live in, claimed recently that there was scarcely a teenager in her constituency who hasn’t been mugged. It is time we took that problem seriously and dealt with it.”
Ms Harman was joined by Ms Thornberry, Islington South and Finsbury Labour MP, and Jennette Arnold, the London Assembly Labour member for North East London, who is also standing for re-election in a constituency that includes Islington.
The group toured the Angel urging Labour supporters to vote on Thursday, May 1. Ms Harman said that Mr Livingstone, working with police, had helped reduce crime in the capital and had provided more social housing.
“We still need more police presence in every neighbourhood and there is still a problem of people being unable to buy or rent new homes,” she said. “But people should judge Ken on his record. The streets are safer, it is quicker to get a bus or Tube – these are the issues.”
Ms Arnold pointed out that Mr Livingstone is committed to introducing a 24-hour Freedom Pass for public transport users over 60. She said: “Pensioners told us they were fed up waiting for 9am to get on the bus or train when they had early-morning appointments. He listened to that.”
The other mayoral candidates include Brian Paddick (Lib Dem) and Sian Berry (Green). In North East London the other assembly candidates are Meral Ece (Lib Dem), Andrew Boff (Conservative), Aled Fisher (Green), Unjum Mirza (Left List), Nicholas Jones (UK Independence Party), Maxine Hargreaves (Christian People’s Alliance) and John Dodds (English Democrats). |
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