Boris wins

I am going to blog about this because, you know, everyone else will do. I have mixed feelings at this late point (12:56, pre-last antibiotic of the day). Ken Livingstone has done a great job. He has increased bus use by 40%, got major investment for Crossrail, got the olympics (only, he freely admits, for the chance of regeneration of the east end) and successfully implemented environmental reforms, like no other major city in the world. He has also seen crime fall by 6 percent for the last few years, and we now have a record amount of police officers on the streets of London. But, he has been accused of corruption, cronyism and sin-of-all-sins hating the evening standard.

Boris on the other hand has run a small right-wing weekly, appeared on TV, had a affair, referred to black people as piccannies and having watermelon smiles, has been homophobic (comparing a gay marriage to one of three men and a dog) and is a big fan of Thatcher. Yes, Her.

Clearly I wanted Ken to win, after all, it was only a two horse race in the end. Personally I voted Brian Paddock, the gay policeman, first, Ken second, perhaps out of some hope that a serious candidate, not a celebrity could get in. In fact, I sincerely hope that Boris Johnson offers Brian a job, and he accepts. His record is one of the best for a policeman anywhere, and that sort of experience of success would be vital. Maybe there is a bright Boris-led future. his record of past work suggests he is lazy and uncaring (he has missed more votes than is really acceptable), so his advisers could run him. More likely I think is a Boris London run similar to Ken's at first. They share many policy choices, and London is still a green, socially concious city . That clock, set ticking by Ken, will not go back.

It needs a Boris that is willing to accept the legacy of Ken and carry on the steps he has taken, making sure that we get Crossrail done on time, and that the Olympics really does transform the East End, not cutting the free travel benefits bought in by Ken. He must not pull funding from public transport. We cannot revisit the dark days of Thatherism, London is a buses and trains city now. Boris, run with it.

There are many benefits I can see Boris bringing to the job. He is a keen cyclist - a very good thing. Hopefully he can bring over Paris' exceptional bike hire scheme. This I feel I would be grinning ear to ear about. Also I like his idea for Family friendly house building. We must attempt to keep communities, in the face of the private developers, London and the success of regeneration schemes depend on it. Family homes are best for this. His unwillingness to not declare a ratio of the number of affordable homes, though, is quite worrying.

But I have to remain positive. He is clearly not a Londoner, but has some good ideas. Lets hope he ditches his Tory reins and runs London as it deserves. If he can't, then I'm afraid.