The Boris approach

Houses of Parliament/ Image: Helen Catt

Our course tutors have planned a trip for us next Wednesday to the London Assembly for a conference with the Mayor himself.

It's interesting as I tend to be very liberal in my views on the majority of issues. There are very few topics that I have a conservative view about.

So I was doing my research on Boris Johnson so that I could get to know more about him, particularly his beliefs and his ideas for London.

It struck me that after reading his list of priorities, I was in fact in great agreement with the Conservative politician on the majority of things.

His ideas on policing seem firm and fair, with particular emphasis on the extent of power he wants to give to the Police Community Support Officers.

As London is by now my home away from home, using the tube has become part of daily life.

For a woman I have no issues with this during daylight although at night, I have to admit that I don't feel a hundred per cent at ease.

It's clear that Boris Johnson has introduced some new measures to the underground by creating safer exit and entry points at the stations and providing well lit areas. As a female, the introduction of this itself would have been enough to convince me to vote for Boris.

What also caught my eye was the Mayor's Fund for London in which he provides finances to support voluntary groups who get young Londoners off the streets.

With the recent issue of knife crime, this is a means of giving parents the opportunity to send their children to groups who provide them with something positive to do with their spare time.

Of course these are some of the issues that Boris Johnson sees as important to tackle during his time as Mayor of London. Whether he is successful in doing so is another matter.

But reading some of his policies have been valuable for me as sometimes, I am too quick to jump on the Labour party bandwagon.

His ideas seem to be based on common sense and getting straight in there to tackle the issues. It will be interesting to see whether he is able to fulfil these ideas.