Clause 25
Greater London Authority Bill
3:00 pm
Tom Brake (Shadow Minister, Department for Communities and Local Government; Carshalton and Wallington, Liberal Democrat)
I support the points made by the hon. Gentleman. The information that I have received about LFEPA suggests that it functions well and has a local government-inspired culture of openness which, according to my contact, contrasts with that of TFL and the LDA. I am told that its budget is one of the most robust, because its local authority input provides a more active degree of scrutiny than might otherwise have applied.
The information that I have received suggests, as the hon. Gentleman said, that this measure may be about trying to ensure that the ethnic minority representation on LFEPA is correct. There may be other, more effective, ways of achieving the degree of balance that the Minister is rightly seeking than simply switching places from local authorities and assembly members to the Mayor. The method being used to achieve that balance is not appropriate. I shall listen carefully to what the Minister says, but he will have to work hard to convince me that I—and the official Opposition—should support these clauses today.