London Mayoral Elections due on 3 May 2012

The vote for the mayor of London will take place on 3 May and it is time to prepare your vote if you haven’t done so already. Those who have registered for postal votes will receive their ballot papers around 20 April. 

Here is a quick summary of the main candidates and how they might affect you:

Boris Johnson, Conservatives

-He is the current mayor of London. During his term, Boris has introduced the bike hire scheme and a council tax freeze every year. Boris has increased investment in transport infrastructure although Tube prices have risen year on year under his management.

-Election pledges include cutting waste at City Hall to free up £3.5 billion for services.

-Putting £445 back in your pocket by freezing the Mayoral share of council tax.

-Creating 200,000 jobs over the next four years.

-1,000 more police on the beat.

-Investing £221 million to transform local high streets and support small businesses

-Ensuring an Olympic legacy with 11,000 new homes and 10,000 new jobs.

-Reducing tube delays 30% by 2015.

Ken Livingstone, Labour

-Acted as London Mayor prior to Boris Johnson. Was famous for cutting tube fares and introducing bendy buses. Ken made a bold move to introduce the congestion charge to reduce city center traffic and to effectively tax the motorists for maintaining the roads. Whilst Ken must take credit for making hard decisions this is the most likely reason for him losing the following election.

-Key pledges include cutting fares by 7% this year saving the average London fare payer £1,000 over 4 years. He is also looking to freeze fares for 2013.

-Crackdown on crime by reversing police cuts.

-Help reduce rents by improving standards with a London non-profit lettings agency

-Tackle heating bills through insulation and an energy coop.

-Introduce a London EMA of up to £30 per week to help young people stay in education.

Brian Paddick, Liberal Democrats

-Respected candidate. Could be the first London Mayor who will also be responsible for the Metropolitan police.

-Key pledges include building more affordable housing in London and tackling unaffordable rent and rogue landlords.

-Help young Londoners into jobs and training schemes.

-Improve fares by introducing a one hour bus ticket so Londoners are not charges more than one if they change buses on a journey. Will also introduce discounts for “early bird” travellers.

-Will improve the justice system by setting up a London wide community payback scheme that gives local people a say over what criminals should be doing in their communities.

Jenny Jones, Green Party

-The Green Party is the only party to say “No” to the High Speed 2 rail scheme because there are far cheaper, greener, quicker-to-build ways to improve the rail network.

-Main pledge is to cut fares and reduce traffic. Jenny will ensure public transport is cheaper than driving. Suburban rail services to be more regular and reduce traffic congestion to clean up London’s polluted air.

Source: Londonelects.org.uk

Only 100 days to the London 2012 Olympics

There are only 100 days to go till the start of the London 2012 Olympics. We are really excited and looking forward to the Olympics being showcased in London. The atmosphere should be electric and have no doubt that we will be good hosts.

Things you should know about the London 2012 Olympics:

- A budget of £9.3 billion has been allocated to the Olympics.

- The organisers, Locog state that the Olympics will be delivered on track, on time and just under budget.

- The Olympic stadium in Stratford will be tendered for sale to one of the London football clubs, most likely West Ham United.

- The velodrome is the most impressive stadium built on the Olympic site. A must see for visitors.

- The Aquatics centre has been fitted with a 160 meter long Wave shaped steel roof. This has been described as one of the toughest construction and engineering challenges on the Olympic Park. Sebastian Coe, chairman of the London 2012 Organising Committee, said: "The design of the roof is iconic and will be one of the lasting images of the London 2012 Games."

- The 12,000 seater bubble shaped Basketball venue has been designed as a movable venue and used in Brazil for the next Olympics.

- George Osborne recently announced that Sunday trading laws will be lifted during the Olympics to allow 24 hour shopping.

- Tube and Bus drivers have been given pay rises during the Olympics after threatening to strike.

- London is expected to suffer from congestion during the Olympics. Roads will be closed to the public and restricted only to Olympic athletes during the games. Public transport will also be affected by the increased volume of visitors coming to London for the Olympics. Transport for London advise travellers to plan their journeys and aim to travel outside of the peak congestion hours as described on their website. Anyone travelling in London should allow additional time for their journeys.

- The impact on small businesses in London is varied. Some businesses are likely to benefit from the increased number of visitors to the UK, particularly those in catering and other trades that will profit from the number of visitors passing their time in London between events. Others could suffer from increased cost of transport during the Olympic period and difficulty in getting to work. The 24 hour trading law is likely to provide greater benefit to big businesses rather than small. Our advice is to plan ahead in order to prevent any logistical issues. Businesses would be advised to provide a television in the workplace in order to motivate staff.

- Enjoy the Games!!!

Government announce plans to tackle tax avoidance

George Osborne announced his intention to tackle tax avoidance and will begin a campaign to close a number of loopholes in the UK tax system. He has made it clear that stamp duty avoidance is unacceptable and will clamp down on individuals who buy property through the use of a company in order to avoid paying tax.

The government have also announced that they will clamp down on tax evasion across a number of industries. Plumbers, dentists, doctors, fitness instructors and even nannies can expect to be targeted this year. The HMRC will take a strict approach towards tax evaders and the late submission of tax returns.