2008 Manifesto: Backing London Business

Championing London at home and abroad

"I will champion London at home and abroad."

2008 Manifesto, Backing London Business, pg 9

Boris Johnson has tirelessly championed London throughout his Mayoralty. Examples of where this positive lobbying brought tangible benefits for the city include the record infrastructure investment that he has secured from the government for projects in London including Crossrail, broadband, smart ticketing, the Northern Line extension to Battersea and the Thames Tideway Tunnel (link). Boris has also been vocal in his support for a new airport in the Thames Estuary to help grow London’s businesses. Due in part to Boris’s lobbying efforts, the Government has announced a consultation into related proposals (link).

Boris has championed London’s causes persistently abroad in order to protect the businesses which make London such a great economic powerhouse. He has stood up to Brussels to emphasise the policies that would damage the City of London such as the Financial Transactions Tax and employment directives (link). Boris is proud that London recently secured investment offers of £10 billion at the World Economic Forum in Davos (link). He has also invested £2 million in the ‘Only in London’ tourism campaign which generated £100 million of income to London (link).

Improving London’s transport infrastructure

"I will improve London’s transport infrastructure."

2008 Manifesto, Backing London Business, pg 9

Mayor Boris Johnson has made investment modernisation and improvement of London’s infrastructure a key priority of his Mayoralty.

In order to do this, he has secured a record £22 billion in the past four years – this includes £6 billion in the tube and £15.9 billion in Crossrail (link). In addition, highways across the city have benefited from over £47 million of investment since 2008 (link). Boris has secured £4.6 billion in the next four years alone for Tube upgrades (link) and the East London Line extension creating London’s first ever orbital railway (link).

Helping businesses avoid Congestion Charge fines

"I will help all businesses avoid Congestion Charge fines by allowing them to pay by account."

2008 Manifesto, Backing London Business, pg 9

In October 2009, Mayor Boris Johnson made it easier for Londoners to pay the Congestion Charge by introducing a number of measures, including the introduction of an automated account system (link). An Organisation Account allows businesses with six or more vehicles to pay the daily Congestion Charge by direct debit if they are registered for Fleet Auto Pay (link).

Scrapping the £25 Congestion Charge

"I will scrap the £25 charge which would cost London’s businesses thousands of pounds a year."

2008 Manifesto, Backing London Business, pg 9

Mayor Boris Johnson has not introduced the £25 Congestion Charge (link). Now that Londoners have a flexible Congestion Charge pricing, paying has been made easier through the introduction of an online account system (link). The Western Extension of the Congestion Charge Zone (WEZ) was removed following a consultation in December 2010 (link). Following the removal of the WEZ, a lower than expected increase in traffic driving into and within the former zone and no discernible impact on air quality has been reported (link).