London Assembly and Mayoral elections 2020, postponed until 2021

Is it too early to start this thread?

It seems to me that the election campaign has now started, as Shaun Bailey has just been confirmed as the Conservative candidate for Mayor.

And also been confirmed as an anti-browns racist. That approach worked out so well for them last time.

Why don't they try putting someone up who has all the conservative views, but just isn't a racist? I feel like that would give them at least a fighting chance?

I am surprised that the Tories have chosen a candidate already. I would expect that by the end of next year there will be a fresh crop of ex-ministers and ex-MPs looking for a new high profile job. Maybe they are not at all confident of beating Sadiq, is that why their selection process was between a black man, a gay man and an American woman?

PS: What does "anti-browns racist" mean?

the conservative views, but just isn't a racist?

I think they are mutually exclusive

I think they are mutually exclusive

No those who are not racist are poorist. Or rather just anti-richist

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/oct/03/tories-london-mayor-pick-shaun-bailey-multiculturalism-robs-britain-of-its-community

Not a fan of Mayor Khan, his record on cycling provision is poor. But the above story of Shaun Bailey's pamphlet must of had him laughing all the way to the polls.

Does anyone have a recent opinion of Andrew Boff?
I only know of his disastrous time as the black bearded leader of LB Hillingdon in the early '90s.

During his time in Hackney Andrew Boff presented the acceptable face of the Tory party. He was and effective and well liked local activist, supporting small businesses, social enterprises and charities. He ran for Mayor of Hackney, losing three times. He was a councillor for a short time after winning a by-election in 2005.
He helped the Broadway Market traders organise themselves against some of the threats from big business takeovers and some of the council's outdated market policy. They failed to protect themselves from the property speculators who ran rings around the council.
For a while he produced a free monthly magazine, E8. It was glossy and interesting but the business model could never work. He now lives in Barking.
On cycling issues he would always listen and mostly talked sense, recognising the popularity and social importance of cycling around here. By the time he became leader of the Tories at City Hall he was less responsive, having to follow the party (Bojo) line.
As a London born son of a policeman and NHS worker he is a welcome relief to the upper class twits and flash entrepreneurs who seem run the Tory machine. As a politician he will be remembered and the man who always came second, except when he came third.

I didn't know this:

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/sadiq-khan-says-his-name-should-be-pronounced-as-saadick-and-not-sadeek-a4233831.html

I know another Sadiq, and I'm sure he introduced himself to me as 'Sadeek', so I was always under the impression that that was the pronunciation of the name, but perhaps he was just tired of fighting against people getting it wrong.

Rory Stewart to stand as an independent

https://twitter.com/RoryStewartUK/status/1180054614713999361?s=20

Lol. Shaun Bailey is fucked.

Remember that cuddly, acceptable Tory, I mean, ex-Tory, I mean, Rory?

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/oct/25/rory-stewart-calls-three-london-men-filmed-in-walkabout-video-minor-gangsters

Can we get Sky News to find them on the street for a reaction so we can have a re-creation of the classic Gillian Duffy 'You're Jokin'?

https://youtu.be/PBdqX60Z71w

Here you go (as posted by @MrDrem in the news thread):

It turns out they are popular Irish musicians... https://www.theguardian.com/politics/201­9/oct/25/irish-musicians-hare-squead-ang­er-minor-gangsters-rory-stewart

So now that the general election is over, who would be actually electable as Mayor for London?
What are the biggest issues for London that a Mayor has power to influence?

Election postponed until 2021.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/13/local-london-mayoral-elections-postponed-year-coronavirus-uk

Apparently the Tories might be replacing Shaun Bailey with Sajid Javid.

The UKIP candidate, Peter Gammons, has launched his campaign using the Twitter account @Gammons4London

He reckons there are two million miles of tunnels under London that cyclists could use.

“I want to get London moving again. There are over 2 million miles of
unused tunnels, streets, and chambers beneath London. This abandoned
network was secretly built by the Ministry of Defence, Post Office,
and BT.

“I want to convert these disused spaces into walkways, safe cycle
lanes, and create the world’s first underground ‘Pod’ transport
system.

https://www.ukip.org/dr-peter-gammons-is-ukip-s-candidate-for-london-mayor

The tunnel/elevated cycleways thing is one that comes up every few years, as I say every few years. It's similar to 'convert all London railways into motorways and congestion is solved forever'. It's always a terrifying glimpse into how completely lost some people are in the modern world and into how comprehensively they fail to understand urban transport policy.

Underground cycle tunnels would be rad tho

But there aren't 2m miles of tunnels under London. No idea where he got that from, it's total bollocks.