Chaos in the city: Brown and bank chiefs hold crisis talks, while sandwich board men get "End Is Nigh" placards out of mothballs 2012 Games to be "cosier", says the Mayor: cosier presumably being a euphemism for "cheaper" In other Olympic news: row rumbles on over anti-doping agency funding, while the main stadium won't be converted to a football ground post-2012. Can anybody spell 'white elephant'? Oyster hack unveiled. Rough sleepers in Westminster at......

Fans of the bendy bus, be of good cheer. The voice of London's transport users, TravelWatch, has concluded there is no case for scrapping bendy buses on some of our busiest routes after its public meeting last week. The 38, 507 and 521 bendy buses are in jeopardy following Boris and TFL chums' consultation over their articulated future, seeking to fulfill the reckless election promise of binning the bendies. But TravelWatch took a fine......

Sir Ian Blair may be on his way out, but one of the issues that defined his tenure as the Met's top cop rumbles on. An inquiry into institutional racism within the Metropolitan police has been ordered by the Mayor, following an campaign by the Black Police Association to ward potential recruits from joining a "hostile and racist environment". Removing the stigma of racism within the Force was a signature Blair goal, one that......

The last Metropolitan police commissioner to resign, James Munro, did so in 1890 after failing to apprehend Jack the Ripper. Sir Ian Blair's departure may not be the result of so egregious an oversight, yet the reasons behind it have inspired much debate on Fleet Street. The Times is in no doubt that Mr Blair's resignation is the result of a "Tory coup" engineered by the Mayor. The Guardian agrees, and even has Boris......

As the top Tory in the country, it was no surprise that Boris' triumphant Tory conference speech would be received rapturously. Beginning with an amusing barb at previous nemesis Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Mayor rounded off his speech with crowd-pleasing promises on council tax and city academies. While David Cameron was seen enjoying Boris' commanding performance, a hint of tension exists between the two, alluded to by Cameron's apparent backtrack over his 'broken' society theme. Could......

If you went down to the river this lunchtime to sit and munch your ciabatta in the sunshine, you may have got a bit of a surprise. You'd have sat on the edge of the Potter's Field park (all done up nicely by Boris's predecessor, Ken Livingstone, we might add) and seen a make-shift but VERY VERY BLUE stage put up with three new pristine white flag-poles on it. At a ceremony with a......

We've had fake funerals, government issue parental guidance, a chocolate baby, shock tactics, marching and in your face policing. It's about time someone actually listened to Lily Allen and put on the benefit gig. Yes, the Knife Crime Awareness Tour will be coming to a town near you in the next year. Kicking off in South Wales (who knew they had a Windsor, too?) and featuring 250 as yet unnamed music acts of all......

Boris Johnson this morning unveiled a mock-up of the new "S" stock trains being constructed for the Metropolitan, Circle, District and Hammersmith & City lines. Boasting more spacious interiors and easier movement between carriages, the main bragging point is that the trains will feature air conditioning, a first for the Underground. Sweltering Victoria line commuters, don't get your hopes up - these shallow, cut-and-cover lines make a/c much easier, though TfL claims to be working......

After his disrupted return from hols back in August, Mayor Johnson vowed to investigate alternatives to our existing London airport situation given the regular breakdowns the big 2 experience, strident opposition to Heathrow expansion and stalling on City Airport's expansion plans. As good as his word, he really is considering the pros and cons of a Thames Estuary airport. More productively, he's calling on government to commission a feasibility study into it as they're......

Boris did us proud today, waving the Paralympic flag for 2012 like a pro. Clearly having taken notice of some of his critics from the closing ceremony of the Olympics 3 or so weeks ago, our Mayor appeared buttoned up, smartly tied and confident in his handling of the flagpole. The double decker bus made a second appearance too, sans dubious celebrities but featuring a tea lady and Nelson mounting his column. Thus, Beijing......

Yesterday heralded a City Hall address from London Assembly Member Dee Docey to mayor Boris Johnson, to ask him to stop funding to the British Fashion Council (BFC) unless they banned dangerously skinny models from London's catwalks. Sadly we've now heard that the mayor has refused, preventing London from taking the progressive stance that other fashion capitals have taken. He argued, along with the BFC, that health certificates would be too much of an......

How envious our former Mayor must be when it comes to Venezuelan politics and the power that his erstwhile chum and budding autocrat Hugo Chavez wields. Pesky media criticising your government and daring to oppose you? Close them down. Irritating elections every four years? Heck, just eliminate your term limit. ¿Es facil, no? Ken's love affair with the Bolivarian Revolution reached its zenith when he struck a deal that saw impoverished developing world Venezuela......

Despite prior indifference, that gold-laden swag bag from Beijing has got Londoners enthused about 2012. Commuting into London is time-consuming. In other news, Pope is Catholic, and dog bites man Mayor Boris to meet with government in bid to tackle air pollution. There be fines in the offing if we don't clean up East London choir caterwauls to final of TV show Council workers cowed by crime are ferried from office to Tube station......

Taking to the stage at the Handover Party in Beijing, his successful flag-unfurling and debut on the international stage complete, Mayor Boris Johnson finally returned to a theme he has occasionally expounded since his election in May: expanding the capital's lexicon. Having re-introduced us to the joys of "piffle" and "cripes" in his three months at the City Hall tiller, the Mayor used the opportunity of addressing London's bid team to discourse on the......

Fears that the "credit crunch" would cramp Carnival style, would seem to have been unfounded as around 250,000 people turned out to revel in the Children's Day Parade yesterday. There was a year on year increase in arrests with 98 people nicked and 7 pit bull type dogs confiscated but police were keen to stress this was a result of "proactive policing" rather than an increase in criminal activity. Carnival spirit appeared to be on......

Team GB's dominance in the Olympic cycling events was consolidated yesterday with Victoria Pendleton's women's sprint victory and Chris Hoy's third gold medal of the Games (fourth of his career) closely followed by team mate Jason Kenny with the silver in the men's sprint. Come the victory parade in October, there will be an impressive retinue of medal holders from the cycling contingent and we're holding out for more to join their ranks following......

Must Britain take any more? We are so unfamiliar with the feeling of national sporting success that the past surprising fortnight has tested the nation's cardiac capacity beyond reasonable limits. Now, we have more excitement in store on Sunday, at the handover ceremony in Beijing. Not only will Leona Lewis and Jimmy Page perform a duet, but David Beckham will enter the stadium on a London bus, before staging a kickaround with children representing......

This Sunday afternoon will see the streets of the West End crammed. Soho Pride, the smaller, younger (prettier?) cousin of London Pride will see street parties and all sorts around the central gay district of town off Old Compton Street and Rupert Street, including the infamous Candy Girls areas. Our favoured bit to head to will be the natural focal point for the whole thing at Soho Square. In its fifth year, the theme......

Being Mayor of London has its perks. If your family have a crappy time getting home from holiday, caught up in the purgatory of Gatwick baggage reclaim and – despite your eminent public standing and instantly recognisable blond moptop – being helpless to do anything about it then at least you have the comfort of spilling your literary aspirational guts about it in the Telegraph and tacking on a bit of transport policy too,......

Like us, Boris must be happy with Team GB's quest for glory in Beijing, where we are currently sitting rather pretty at 9th place in the medals table. (TOP TIP - Watch out for 'Super Saturday' coming up - there are a number of sports where Team GB are well-placed to win more medals, so we might sneak up the table a bit.) Like us, we presume that Boris has also noted that London's......

The BBC is often accused of being London-biased and besmirching the country's northern climes, but Auntie has nothing on a report which reckons that cities such as Liverpool, Sunderland and Bradford are 'beyond revival'. Policy Exchange, a favoured think tank of David Cameron, believes that the decline of shipping and manufacturing means former coastal strongholds are doomed, and that costly regeneration across the cities should be abandoned. Moreover, they've advocated a mass migration southward......

Back in June we said Boris needed to get serious about public peeing. Seems he's a Londonist reader as today he called for more firms to get on board with the Community Toilet Scheme. This prosaic and uninspiringly named scheme pays local businesses to open up their private facilities for public convenience. Piloted in Richmond and launched this year in Wandsworth, Boris wants it rolled out London-wide and not only for Freedom Pass wielding......

Thames Water chase quick buck with luxury flats over super sewer Penny pinching Boris takes early break from Transys, the original Oyster operators, to find cheaper alternative Stop and search at Climate Camp causes consternation The Evening Standard unreservedly apologises to Prince Phillip over prostate cancer story Yum, yum: there's a Thai food festival in Greenwich Park this weekend Image courtesy of Stu_Egan via the Londonist flickr group.......

Transport for London has published a report revealing that congestion in the city is as bad as it was before the introduction of the C-charge. Though 21% less traffic (amounting to 70,000 cars) enters the zone compared to 2002, a "decreasing level of road space" owing to roadworks and traffic calming measures means that jams are just as lengthy. The western extension, already under review, has seen 30,000 fewer vehicles daily. Despite seemingly not......

The latest from court: Barry George found not guilty of Jill Dando's murder, while jury in 7/7 plot trial fail to reach a verdict Kensingtonites watch out, there's a bogus policeman about The real deal, meanwhile, are set to introduce more patrols at Tube stations Careless staff at St. Georges hospital leave patient files laying around No money, no problem: London will weather the economic storm, says the Mayor And finally, Londonist breaks its......

During the Mayoral election, one of the slurs regularly trotted out against Boris Johnson was his lack of tact when it came to race relations. In particular, his description of black people as "picaninnies" was offered by opponents as evidence of his unsuitability to rule over a multi-ethnic metropolis such as London. Nearly 100 days into his reign, not only has the new mayor failed to destroy the city as many predicted, he's surprised......

It seemed the debate over Trafalgar Square's fourth plinth was settled: after Boris' election pledge to install a statue of Sir Keith Park was shot down, the space would continue to home modern art. But perhaps not: Prospect magazine reckons Westminster council plans to erect a statue of our dear Queen once she's pegged it. Like her nearby relative George IV, the scheme would see Liz on horseback, though we're not sure that would be......

Long summer days conjure up memories of the carefree days of our youth. And then we read this: 10-year-old boys attack a woman after she denies them a cigarette. Shouldn’t they be bumming candy or, we don’t know, splashing around in a lido instead? By now, you’ve no doubt heard about the emergency landing of Qantas Flight QF-30 from London to Melbourne. Causes unknown, but the theorising has begun. Plans for a new Holland......

Olympic Delivery Authority criticised over construction emissions Attack on police in Croydon may have been gang retaliation Don't read this if you ate strawberries at Wimbledon Notting Hill Carnival will be "Welcoming the World" "funkapolitan" style with Boris ululating on the side Image courtesy of Kayode Okeyode via the Londonist flickr group.......

Back in April we reported that retail sales were looking healthy early on in '08. Seems the trend has continued, with spending in central London last month up 8.7% compared to June 2007, while the national figure dropped by 0.4%. Continental visitors flush with sterling-thumping Euros, along with heavy discounting and aggressive mid-season sales from department stores, have helped retailers to healthy profit margins, though the research firm KPMG cautioned that the trend doesn't necessarily......