Former Sunday Telegraph editor to audit London ad budget

Daniel Farey-Jones 09-May-08

LONDON - Mayor of London Boris Johnson has appointed former Sunday Telegraph editor Patience Wheatcroft to examine City Hall spending, including reducing its advertising budget.

The mayor's appointment of a "forensic audit panel", led by Wheatcroft, follows his promise to cut the Greater London Authority's ad budget by £16.5m to pay for more police on the streets.

The panel will review the GLA's publicity and advertising expenditure, the use of external consultants and agency staff, and all areas where expenditure has grown since 2004.

It will also examine possible mismanagement and corruption in the awarding of grants at the London Development Agency under the previous mayor Ken Livingstone.

It will present initial findings and a progress report to the mayor within 30 days and a final report within 60 days.

Wheatcroft, who was business editor of The Times before taking up her Telegraph role, is currently a non-executive director of Barclays and central London property developer Shaftesbury.

She resigned as Sunday Telegraph editor in September after 18 months in charge. She was replaced by Daily Telegraph deputy editor Ian MacGregor.

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