Local Conservatives have hit out at the Mayor of Lewisham, Sir Steve Bullock, after figures obtained through a Freedom of Information request revealed he failed to meet the former Mayor of London Boris Johnson to discussthe proposed extension of the Bakerloo line between its announcement in September 2014 and Boris Johnson’s end of term in April 2016.
Sir Steve Bullock and the Cabinet Member for Transport only met with representatives from Transport for London twice during this period, but were present at other meetings where the proposal was discussed. The figures also show that none of the borough’s three Labour MP’s met with Transport for London to discuss the proposals, whileLewisham’s representative on the London Assembly only met with Transport for London once.
Ross Archer, the Conservative Candidate for the Bellingham By-Election, criticised Labour’s attendance record saying:
“A number of London boroughs all want the Bakerloo line to serve them, this is a vital piece of investment in our borough’s infrastructure and I am amazed that our elected Labour representatives in Lewisham have not taken this more seriously.
“They need to fight for this extension and not sit back and hope for the best. The Bakerloo line will more than double the number of trains per an hour on the Hayes line that runs through Lower Sydenham and Catford, it will increase capacity on the line and it will improve the daily commute for thousands for commuters in Bellingham.
“I believe residents are feeling let down by the Labour dominated Lewisham Council failure to make a strong case for the extension. I hope the Mayor and his cabinet will now meet and lobby the new Mayor of London much more to secure this vital infrastructure investment in Bellingham.”