What matters to London...

As the candidates step up their campaigns to win the London mayoral election on 1 May, London Bulletin takes a look at some of the issues that most concern Londoners

On 1 May 2008 Londoners will once again be asked to elect a Mayor of London and 25 members of the London Assembly for a four-year period that will take us to the eve of the London Olympic Games in 2012.

Whoever wins the Mayoral election will also be responsible for setting the budgets, and appointing part or all of the boards, forTransport for London, the Metropolitan Police Authority, the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority and the London Development Agency.

The outcome of the Mayoral election will have profound implications for London in the coming years, not least for the London boroughs who will be working closely with the Mayor across a host of issues affecting the lives of their residents.

As the level of government closest to Londoners, the capital’s boroughs are well versed in addressing the complex needs and aspirations of one of the most diverse cities in the world.

Since 2000 however, the re-introduction of a tier of regional government to the capital has provided boroughs with the opportunity to work with a partner that has been afforded some real strategic powers in relation to some of the big issues that affect the lives of Londoners across the board.

And we have a good idea of what those issues are.

For the past 18 years London Councils, on behalf of the boroughs, has undertaken a survey of Londoners that provides a detailed picture of the issues that matter to Londoners from every corner of the capital.