London Councils has called for the capital's new mayor to drive improvements in joint working between the capital's key agencies, to solve issues such as crime. The group's leader, Merrick Cockell, called for the boroughs and the mayor, Boris Johnson, to establish a capital-wide public service board that would co-ordinate local authority, health, police and education services, on a model already established successfully in other parts of the country, such as Kent. He warned that the number of complex projects under way, such as Crossrail and the Olympics, needed co-ordination from the mayor to drive them forward. Writing in this week's The MJ, Cllr Cockell explained: ‘Chaired by the mayor, this would bring together all the leaders of London's public services to develop common goals and share expertise, to deliver better results for London's communities.' Cllr Cockell said the boroughs wanted to work with the mayor to set up a new team which would scrutinise all services and investment projects, ‘from a new school in local neighbourhoods through to massive projects such as Crossrail and the 2012 Olympics.' It came as Mr Johnson revealed he wanted a time limit on his tenure at City Hall. He has written to Hazel Blears asking for a change in the law to prevent the London mayor from ever serving more than two terms. The new mayor had called for the two-term limit during the election campaign. ‘Without any limits on the number of times an individual can serve as mayor, there is a real danger of cronyism, misconduct and corruption at City Hall,' said Mr Johnson.
