Mostly Harmless

Boris Johnson has just been elected the new mayor of London, filling the very prominent shoes of the Labour Government’s Ken Livingstone.  The Conservative candidate won with 1,168,738 first and second preference votes, compared with Mr Livingstone’s 1,028,966 on a record turnout of 45%.

There was no bad blood between the two mayors, old and new, as Johnson acknowledged the efforts of Livingstone, describing him as a “very considerable public servant.”  He added, “”You shaped the office of mayor. You gave it national prominence and when London was attacked on 7 July 2005 you spoke for London.”

Mr Johnson also paid tribute to his “courage and the sheer exuberant nerve with which you stuck it to your enemies, especially in New Labour”.  This double-edged comment (both praising Livingstone and slyly attacking New Labour) is a testament to the skills of Johnson as a politician.  However, Livingstone was quick to reassure his party where his loyalty lay,

“There is absolutely nothing that I could have asked from the Labour Party that it didn’t throw into this election, from Gordon Brown right the way down to the newest recruit, handing out leaflets on very wet, cold days.

This may prove to be a stepping stone to Number 10 for Johnson, an event which in any case would satisfy Conservative students across the country sporting “Boris for PM” T-shirts.

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