CULTURE, HERITAGE AND IDENTITY
A city is not only its infrastructure. London’s culture is among the principal reasons people come here, stay here, invest here and visit here, and it is a mayoral responsibility in a way that many candidates treat as decorative. A Mayor should take pride in this country, its history and its capital, and says so without apology.
14.1 Identity and ceremony
- The Union Jack flown across the GLA estate and on public monuments and landmarks.Within direct control on GLA property. Negligible cost.
- The Union Jack flown on The Mall and at Royal Parks sites.Royal Parks and Crown land require agreement, which the Mayor is well placed to secure.
- A service of dedication at St Paul’s Cathedral as part of the mayoral investiture.The Mayor determines the form of his own inauguration. Negligible cost.
- The Easter Parade returned to London.Indicative cost: two million pounds annually.
14.2 Culture and community
- London’s nightlife and grassroots music venues protected in the London Plan.Venue protection policy, the Night Czar and licensing influence are established mayoral instruments. Indicative cost: five million pounds annually.
- London’s heritage buildings, museums and libraries protected and invested in.Indicative cost: thirty million pounds annually.
- A centre for spiritual wellbeing, meditation, guidance and teaching.Delivered as a capital project with partners. Indicative capital: twenty-five million pounds.
- London Zoo supported in its transition into a centre for scientific research and endangered species protection, with every animal remaining in situ until passing.ZSL is a registered charity. The Mayor can convene, fund and champion this direction.
- Proportionate face covering requirements on security grounds in defined settings, applied neutrally.Applied directly to TfL premises and GLA buildings where proportionate. Religious head coverings permitted. Any such requirement must apply neutrally to all face coverings or it is neither lawful nor defensible.
14.3 London in the world
- London’s global standing restored, city to city, as the most revered and admired city in the world.Indicative cost: eight million pounds annually.
- Closer cultural ties with Europe and beyond, on touring artists, exchange and shared institutions.Practical arrangements within London’s gift to advocate for, distinct from questions of national membership which are not a mayoral matter.
- Talented, hard-working people who contribute to British life always welcome in London, with visa routes that reflect this city’s economic needs.Immigration is a Home Office function. The Mayor makes London’s economic case, within the framework of a controlled and fair national system.
- A London service standard for Home Office asylum and immigration processing, with the backlog published in full.Processing is reserved. Publication and pressure are not.