Mr Armitt, let us just get this straight. You approved Mr Higgins' package which is £641,000 a year, but your own package is £250,000. That is part time isn't it?
A friend of mine in the Foreign Office tells me that they find it virtually impossible to get foreign visitors in to see the Mayor. I understand he's declined to see the Mayor of Shanghai and the Mayor of Buchares
Can I explore the issue of diary management? Yesterday I attended the launch of the "Don"t Choke Britain" campaign in Covent Garden, which I believe the Mayor was expected at and couldn"t attend at the last minute. The Deputy Mayor was certainly expected and the organisers were extremely upset when she failed to appear. I recognise that diary management must be a nightmare, but what's your first priority when setting the Mayor's diary?