Boris Johnson scraps London's mayoral freesheet

Johnson: scraps The Londoner

Darren Davidson 14-May-08

LONDON - The Londoner, the Mayor's controversial free newspaper, is to be scrapped in a move Boris Johnson's office claims will save £2.9m.

Johnson said the money saved from scrapping the paper will be used to plant 10,000 trees across the capital.

The freesheet, which is distributed to 3m homes across London, was dubbed as "propaganda" and referred to as 'Pravda', the former newspaper of the USSR, by critics who accused former Mayor of London Ken Livingstone of using the title to promote his pet projects.

Johnson, who launched the tree scheme in Brixton, said he aims to have all the new trees planted by the start of the 2012 Olympic Games.

Johnson said: "In the last few years a third of boroughs have seen a decline in the number of street trees.

"Many London streets, particularly in deprived areas, have no street trees at all. I believe that as many areas as possible should enjoy the many advantages that they bring."

The scheme will involve charities such as Trees for Cities, who will have a say about which boroughs should get new trees. Londoners will also get to vote on which of the areas should have trees planted first.

The closure of the paper follows news last week that Johnson plans to slash advertising budgets for the Greater London Authority, including the Metropolitan Police and Transport for London, to pay for more police on the capital's streets.

He has also promised to mount an inquiry into bureaucratic waste at City Hall, which is expected to lead to 14 jobs being cut in the mayor's 70-strong publicity and marketing team.