Livingstone: the man with a tin of piecrust promises

Ken Livingstone is refreshingly honest for a politician.
Asking us to judge him on his record after eight years in power, he says: "With me, everyone knows what they're getting. It's on the tin."
And what a tin it is!
It's amazing you can get so much on it.
ASfter all in his period inchange of London he has:
• Failed to prevent a rise in domestic violence as he pledged to do
• Failed to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour on public transport – instead it has gone up
• Failed to protect green parks and open spaces as gardens the size of 22 Hyde Parks have disappeared
• Failed to meet his own recycling targets – London has the worst household recycling rate in the country
• Failed to meet his election promise over housing targets. He is on track to miss his target by 50%.
• Failed to deliver on a 2004 Manifesto promise to bring late night tube trains on Fridays and Saturdays
• Failed to deliver on 2004 Manifesto pledge to increase the number of female bus drivers. The number has actually fallen.
• Failed to keep his promise made in 2003 (8 months before the last Mayoral election) on congestion charging to keep it to £5 per day. He raised it soon after re-election to £8 per day. Furthermore, the Mayor U-turned on his 2004 Manifesto promise to retain the existing congestion charge residents’ discount.
• Failed to deliver on school travel plans. By 2009 he promised every school would have one. Currently only 53% of schools participate.
Furthermore, on transport, after his re-election in 2004, the Mayor:
• Raised single bus journey costs by 20% Raised single tube fares by 50%. In total, this is a 100% increase in fare charges since May 2004 on the tubes and buses.
• Failed a commitment on the environment to expand the London schools environment programme to secondary schools. This expansion has not happened.
• Failed to stand up against controversial figures preaching hate. He invited Muslim Cleric Yusuf Al-Qaradawi to London – a man who supports the death penalty for homosexuals.
• Failed to promote a tolerant and cosmopolitan London by making anti-Semitic remarks more than once – firstly towards the Ruben Brothers and secondly to an Evening Standard journalist. The court case that followed cost the taxpayer £200,000.
• Failed to deliver on a key election pledge of introducing a ‘Culture Card’ in the Capital. This was promised at the last two election campaigns and has not materialised.
• Failed to protect taxpayers’ money – he spent nearly £50m on plans which have been shelved for the West London Crossing and Cross River Trams.
• Failed to protect taxpayers’ money – The Mayor promised to launch a campaign to with major private sector employees to give a second chance to Londoners who have been excluded from the Labour Market. This turned into a scheme called ‘Diversity Works’. It cost £9.8m to the London taxpayer and is currently under investigation by the police as part of the LDA financial mismanagement case.