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• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 20 July 2011

I have two issues in mind. The first is with street signage on public transport. As a tourist at Athens and at Beijing, I found that very useful in my experience of those cities. I am just wondering whether any thought has been put into that in the London context over and above what the ambassadors will be doing on the street level.

• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 24 October 2007

Just coming back to the issue of the figures for housing, I think it would have been useful to have had someone from the Housing Corporation explain those figures because I have had difficulties getting some idea of what their methodology is on that front and it will undoubtedly become an annual political football. Coming to what I wanted to raise with Neale: the unimplemented planning permissions. Where do you think the explanation lies for that? Is it the five year limit on planning permissions? Is there not the building capacity to build them out? It would be useful, given...

• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 24 October 2007

Neale, you missed out housing cooperatives. They are based on mutuality. They are an obvious model for intermediate housing, particular for young people.

• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 24 October 2007

Just one more point: the Tenant Management Organisation (TMOs). The Mayor will have responsibility for the Decent Homes programmes now, I understand. Presumably he will be keener on TMOs than going through local authorities, because of their involvement in the management. As Val said, the issue of quality of service is as important as the quantity of housing available.

• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 24 October 2007

Just going back to this question of different kinds of housing, what place will housing co-operatives, tenant management organisations and Black and Minority Ethnic Registered Social Landlords have in the Mayor's overall strategy?

• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 25 April 2007

Finally, given that you have milestones and key milestones and a set date to achieve it, would it not have been better to have set up bonus payments rather than contingency sums, given that is going to be the name of the game - getting to key stages at key times at critical points? Clearly we would rather be giving them money for achieving that, rather than spending their time making those claims, which invariably half the building trade does.

• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 25 April 2007

Sir Roy, if we accept the Government figures as the upper limits to the expenditure on the Olympics, I think the key thing is the management of the contingencies. I am worried that we find ourselves in contracts with contractors who then spend most of their time making claims for the contingencies. They are very generous; about 60% of the build costs. I have certainly had that experience of managing projects myself. What do you have lined up in the procurement arrangements with contractors which make sure they focus and achieve the milestones, rather than putting in the estimators to...

• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 25 April 2007

You have mentioned the Cabinet Committees that are keeping an eye on this. Surely the building contract and the legality of that will supersede anything that they can decide about which contingency sums can be drawn from or not.