The Londoner
Encyclopedia
The Londoner was a newsletter
in the style of a newspaper
published by the Mayor of London
and delivered free to most households in Greater London
, United Kingdom
.
In the words of the Mayor of London's office, it was "a newsletter for Londoners from the Mayor of London. It provided information about the policies and services delivered by the Greater London Authority
and key issues affecting life in the capital, and encouraged participation in current debates and consultation."
According to the Mayor's Annual Report 2005/06, the budget for The Londoner was £2,882,000, of which £632,000 came directly from the GLA precept portion of council tax
paid by London householders. Most of the remaining £2,250,000 came from advertising and editorial material paid for by Transport for London
and the Metropolitan Police Authority
.
articles, particularly those who criticised the previous mayor Ken Livingstone
. Those targeting the Londoner attack what they saw as political bias, for example, putting the Venezuela flag on an advertisement for bus travel.
The current Mayor
Boris Johnson
scrapped The Londoner as part of his mayoral manifesto pledge, describing it as "the Mayor's ludicrous Pyongyang
-style newspaper". Johnson has pledged to use up to £1 million of the saved money to plant 10,000 trees.
Newsletter
A newsletter is a regularly distributed publication generally about one main topic that is of interest to its subscribers. Newspapers and leaflets are types of newsletters. Additionally, newsletters delivered electronically via email have gained rapid acceptance for the same reasons email in...
in the style of a newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
published by the Mayor of London
Mayor of London
The Mayor of London is an elected politician who, along with the London Assembly of 25 members, is accountable for the strategic government of Greater London. Conservative Boris Johnson has held the position since 4 May 2008...
and delivered free to most households in Greater London
Greater London
Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
In the words of the Mayor of London's office, it was "a newsletter for Londoners from the Mayor of London. It provided information about the policies and services delivered by the Greater London Authority
Greater London Authority
The Greater London Authority is the top-tier administrative body for Greater London, England. It consists of a directly elected executive Mayor of London, currently Boris Johnson, and an elected 25-member London Assembly with scrutiny powers...
and key issues affecting life in the capital, and encouraged participation in current debates and consultation."
According to the Mayor's Annual Report 2005/06, the budget for The Londoner was £2,882,000, of which £632,000 came directly from the GLA precept portion of council tax
Council tax
Council Tax is the system of local taxation used in England, Scotland and Wales to part fund the services provided by local government in each country. It was introduced in 1993 by the Local Government Finance Act 1992, as a successor to the unpopular Community Charge...
paid by London householders. Most of the remaining £2,250,000 came from advertising and editorial material paid for by Transport for London
Transport for London
Transport for London is the local government body responsible for most aspects of the transport system in Greater London in England. Its role is to implement the transport strategy and to manage transport services across London...
and the Metropolitan Police Authority
Metropolitan Police Authority
The Metropolitan Police Authority is the police authority responsible for supervising the Metropolitan Police Service, the police force for Greater London ....
.
Criticism
Costing £2.8 million a year to fund, many stated that the publication was "Expensive propaganda". It became the topic of many heated blogBlog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
articles, particularly those who criticised the previous mayor Ken Livingstone
Ken Livingstone
Kenneth Robert "Ken" Livingstone is an English politician who is currently a member of the centrist to centre-left Labour Party...
. Those targeting the Londoner attack what they saw as political bias, for example, putting the Venezuela flag on an advertisement for bus travel.
The current Mayor
Mayor of London
The Mayor of London is an elected politician who, along with the London Assembly of 25 members, is accountable for the strategic government of Greater London. Conservative Boris Johnson has held the position since 4 May 2008...
Boris Johnson
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson is a British journalist and Conservative Party politician, who has been the elected Mayor of London since 2008...
scrapped The Londoner as part of his mayoral manifesto pledge, describing it as "the Mayor's ludicrous Pyongyang
Pyongyang
Pyongyang is the capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, commonly known as North Korea, and the largest city in the country. Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River and, according to preliminary results from the 2008 population census, has a population of 3,255,388. The city was...
-style newspaper". Johnson has pledged to use up to £1 million of the saved money to plant 10,000 trees.