A: No of course not, I’m a Liberal! I like buskers in stations. Playing music via headphones is fine. I don’t like the intrusive beggars who come into train carriages and ‘entertain’, but that’s already banned by byelaws.

A: I think it is wrong to require candidates for the police to work first as Special Constables. We want the police to attract the best mix of recruits, not artificially narrow the field by excluding those who are not able to be Specials. Many Specials have no desire to become fulltime professional police; it is and should remain a service that complements the paid role.

A: You may know that LibDems opposed the creation of the Mayor and wanted much greater powers for the Assembly. I was a member of the Ludford Commission back in 1997, the group set up by the LibDems to respond to the legislation on setting up the GLA, so I remember it well! It would take primary (Westminster) legislation to change the relative powers of Mayor and Assembly. However, smart and persistent questioning plus effective lobbying can put the Mayor on the spot and get results. I achieved change in my own neighbourhood, getting the Mayor to relocate a major pedestrian crossing on the A1 at the Angel, so it can be done!

A: Thank you for your question. It is important that we remain aware of human rights issues in Kashmir. Within London, I would have an open door to the community, and always be happy to meet with you and hear your concerns, especially about issues within London such as access to services. On the international level, I would be happy to raise issues on behalf of London’s Kashmiri community with our MEPs; as you may know Liz Lynne MEP takes a deep interest in Kashmir issues.

Hamilton House, Mabledon Place, London WC1H 9BB

Come and hear Bridget and the other the shortlisted candidates giving 5-minute presentations and answering your questions.

For further information, please ring the Regional Office on 020 7222 0134.

In this new video, Bridget talks about the importance of small businesses for regeneration.

Bridget will champion the concerns of London’s small businesses. There is more to our city than the Square Mile; we need to support London’s local economy

Bridget’s priorities:

•maximising the Olympic legacy for Londoners
•encouraging Business Improvement Districts and supporting town centres;
•promoting green jobs.

Read more about Bridget’s track record in regeneration here.

A: I think all Londoners share your frustration about long-running road works, and also different companies digging up the same road several times over.

One of the problems is that many agencies have an absolute right to dig up the road. However, there are things that can be done to control them.

When I had the environment portfolio on Islington Council, I introduced much stricter notification rules so that residents and businesses had as much advance possible of the road works. We also put much improved and regularly-updated information on the Council website so that people knew what was happening.

Having visited many work sites, I’ve learned that sometimes there will be periods of relative inactivity (for example, new pipes have to settle before the road above them can be resurfaced) even though that looks bad to the rest of us! To make sure there are only essential delays, I support the introduction of lane rental; this is a scheme whereby the utility companies etc pay more money the longer their works take. That way there is a real incentive for them to work efficiently and finish promptly.

Liberal Democrats also favour tube works being done in big blocks rather than lots of small disruptions. It’s in everyone’s interest for these essential works to be completed as efficiently as possible.

Bridget’s priorities:

•local generation of renewable energy;
•green and brown roofs to support biodiversity in built-up areas;
•defending London’s precious green spaces.

Making London a truly sustainable city is essential for our future. Climate change remains the biggest challenge we face. Bridget has the right policy expertise to hold the Mayor to account.

Read more about Bridget’s track record on our environment here.

A: You are quite correct that housing is a crucial issue for London and Londoners. The quality of social housing in London has improved in recent years, but the quantity is far too small to meet Londoners’ needs. Despite Labour rhetoric, they have failed to deliver.

I would like to see social housing providers able to borrow against future rental income to generate capital to provide new homes; I support active measures to bring empty buildings into use as homes; and an imaginative approach to planning, like the examples in my own borough of providing new homes above or alongside rebuilt schools.

I’m also strongly in favour of devolving day-to-day management and maintenance of estates to tenants and residents wherever possible, through Housing Co-Ops, Tenant Management Organisations or Community Housing Associations.
Making London a truly sustainable city is a priority for me, so having greener, more energy efficient buildings is essential, as is making best use of existing buildings.

We need strong voices to make the case for London to government on policies like housing benefit where our city has special needs. And we need to act against the house price inflation that has caused crises in individual families as well as the national economy.

These are all areas where Assembly members have a crucial role in scrutinising the Mayor’s planning policies & housing strategy, as well as conducting enquiries into the impact of national policy on London’s housing market.

A: Thank you for raising your concerns about the Dartford Crossing tolls with me. As you know, the Crossing is seen as a national rather than a regional facility, managed by ConnectPlus on behalf of the Highways Agency. It is however entirely appropriate that Assembly members ask hard questions about the Crossing, especially given its impact on many Londoners.

At a time when the Government is trying to close the deficit in the national budget, it is I think unlikely that they would be willing to look at abolishing the tolls, although it is certainly appropriate to ask for reports on how much net income is generated from tolls and how this is spent.

The operators encourage pre-payment to reduce congestion, and give discounts for people living nearby. The Assembly could usefully enquire how well these schemes are working in practice. I agree that a remote payment system sounds like a sensible approach. The Department for Transport has also looked at redesigning the layout of the crossing and/or introducing one-way tolls to keep traffic moving.

The highest levels of traffic are consistently in July, during the summer holidays; it may be that congestion could be reduced by better publicising advance payment options to holiday-makers, including by operators of cross-channel ferries and regional airports who may be the destinations for this extra traffic.

Getting both passenger and freight traffic off the roads and onto rail should also be part of a joined-up and environmentally responsible solution. With that in mind, I will continue to campaign for the Thameslink upgrade to be completed as well as Crossrail.