A city to enjoy
The last eight years have seen London crowned the most exciting city in the world, with London announced as the winning city to host the 2012 Olympic Games.
Seven out of ten people say that access to London's incredible array of museums, galleries, cinemas, theatres, restaurants, music venues, sporting events, nightclubs and the myriad of other cultural opportunities - very many of them free - is one of the main reasons they come to live and work in, or visit London. It has what has made London the
most visited single city destination in the world, topping Paris and New York.
Part of the reason for this success is the incredible richness and variety of London's culture. It is truly the world in one city. Ken's policy has been to celebrate this, make it more accessible to all Londoners by organising and supporting the maximum number of free events - in the last 8 years London has once again become a ‘festival city' - and to support the development of London's arts and culture across the board.
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Among his policies to continue to make London a great city to enjoy, Ken will work to deliver the greatest ever Olympic Games and Paralympic Games, leaving a legacy of new opportunities for Londoners. As well as the Olympics, Ken will:
- continue to stage the world's greatest New Year's Eve fireworks display each year
- help make Christmas shopping a little easier each year through closing Oxford St and Regent St to all traffic on a Saturday in the run up to Christmas
- invest in the expansion of the Tate Modern, London's most visited tourist attraction, to enable up to a million additional visitors a year
- kick-start development of a new international film centre on the Southbank to create a world-class film venue
- continue the programme of London festivals on Trafalgar Square and across London.
If re-elected, Ken will be building on a record of success:
- Winning the Olympic Games and hosting the 2004 Athens Torch Relay
- Hosting Le Grand Depart of the 2007 Tour de France, enjoyed by crowds of 2 million
- Supported the successful completion of new Wembley Stadium, and the Wembley Park tube station to make it viable
- Over 100,000 young Londoners participated in Summer of Sport activities
- Supported the renaissance of the Southbank and the beautifully restored Royal Festival Hall
- ‘Get into London Theatre' cheap ticket campaign supported achievement of record 14 million attendances in London theatre in 2007
- Set up a single agency for film in the capital - Film London - helping make London the 3rd busiest production centre in the world after Los Angeles and New York
- Landmark Trafalgar Square Fourth Plinth project has supported London's growing reputation as the world-leading centre for contemporary art.
- Backed London Fashion Week
- Supported live music and new or redeveloped cultural centres
- 700,000 people enjoyed the most spectacular New Year's Eve fireworks display in the world, for free, at the London Eye.
- Pedestrianised Trafalgar Square and made it the venue for an incredible range of free concerts and festivals, film screenings, pop concerts, cultural festivals and the three week summer festival of street arts in August.
- Celebration of many of London's diverse cultures and faiths including: Chinese New year, St Patrick's day, London Mela, Christmas, Simcha in the Square, Diwali, Eid, Vaisakhi, the annual Menorah lighting.
- The Mayor's Thames Festival brings the riverside alive for three days of free events every September
- Support for the lesbian and gay Pride celebrations
- Rise festival watched by an audience of up to 100,000 each year has re-established the tradition of free pop festivals with a conscience - celebrating London's multicultural population and opposing racism.