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• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 18 November 2006

Thank you for your verbal report. No doubt, there will be some follow-up from others who are on the MPA about clarifications for your conversations with the Home Secretary, and the West London Tram will be brought up later on in subsequent questions. The thing I wanted to do was actually just congratulate GLA Events and Media team for doing a very good event on Sunday at Trafalgar Square.

• Question by: Jennette Arnold OBE
• Meeting date: 18 November 2006

I mentioned about the hospital because in times of illness, that is something that stays with people, because of all the other factors, but there are other spin-offs as well. Somebody told me recently that when you look at elders, they are not able to use the holiday schemes that are on offer, because many of those--

• Question by: Tony Arbour
• Meeting date: 18 November 2006

Do you know that is a bit rich, really, coming from you, saying that things are being dealt with for party political reasons. Many people would say that the London Plan and your amendment is driving forward a political agenda; for example, your policy relating to affordable housing. That is a political matter. In the opening statement which you made this morning, you talked about your casual attitude to events being rather more casual than, how shall I put it, more formal parts of Government. The truth of the matter is -

• Question by: Damian Hockney
• Meeting date: 08 September 2005

Tony (Winterbottom), I have something else. The Mayor has just admitted that you use `expensive lawyers.' Those are his very words. When over 100 firms, then, employ lawyers to defend themselves in these situations in order to defend themselves and real jobs ' 11,000 real jobs in London ' they are then briefed against in the press. They are then briefed against and accused of being all sorts of things, which they are now completely fed up with ' that they are a handful, greedy; over 100 businesses employing 11,000 people are greedy. They are demonised, and then the lawyers...

• Question by: Damian Hockney
• Meeting date: 08 September 2005

Do you see my point, Tony (Winterbottom)?

• Question by: Damian Hockney
• Meeting date: 08 September 2005

Like-for-like ' is that like-for-like? I do not think so.

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 08 September 2005

Absolutely. I am aware of the Canary Wharf initiative, and I laud it. It is absolutely fantastic, and it is the kind of thing we want. We work very closely in north London with The College of North West London to try to look at the skills that will be needed in that area. Therefore, through the LSC and the further education colleges, it is absolutely essential that we work out the skills that are needed. That is what happened in Canary Wharf. They worked out the skills that were needed, and then were able to provide the training for...

• Question by: Dee Doocey
• Meeting date: 08 September 2005

Still, even in what you have just described, you have not mentioned any interaction with the people on the ground ' the businesses ' at this stage. You are talking about consulting the boroughs and consulting other stakeholders. I would have thought that at this stage, you need the information from the people who are going to be looking for the contracts, and who are going to be producing it. I find it quite difficult to get information. If I could, I will address the next bit to Tony (Winterbottom, Executive Director, Regeneration & Development, LDA), rather than you. Tony...

• Question by: John Biggs
• Meeting date: 08 September 2005

I think it would be very helpful if that were done, but also, if something which is accessible to local businesses who are not politicians like us ' who understand all these convoluted politician-speak reports ' something which they could understand and could understand how they could have access to tendering and contracts and get some of the benefits which they have been promised out of the Olympics. I hope that is possible, as well. The second question, then, is about employment training in the construction industry. My understanding is that there has already been quite a bit of work...

• Question by: Damian Hockney
• Meeting date: 08 September 2005

One of these guys bought his land for £1.25 million. That was three years ago, and then it was valued by Porter Glenny, your people, at £1.071 million, a drop of 24%, when all the other land in the area, because of the Olympics, is going up.