London Councils would like to extend our congratulations to our Vice Chair Cllr Teresa O'Neill OBE (London Borough of Bexley) on being nominated for a Life Peerage.

A total of 26 figures were made members of the House of Lords as part of the latest honours list. The peerages were conferred by the King on recommendation from Liz Truss, further to advice from former prime minister Boris Johnson.

You can see the full list of nominations here.

With growing numbers of Londoners struggling with cost-of-living pressures, the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for London met on Monday to discuss this important topic.

Cllr Georgia Gould, Chair of London Councils, spoke at the event to highlight boroughs’ work supporting their residents, and to make the case for policy changes at a national level. The voluntary and business sectors were also represented on the panel of speakers; with Manny Hothi of the anti-poverty group Trust for London and Stephen Jones from the London Chamber of Commerce & Industry addressing the meeting.

Stakeholders from a range of London organisations attended and took part in the discussion, sharing a range of perspectives and concerns.

Co-chaired by Sir Bob Neill MP and Florence Eshalomi MP, the APPG is due to hold a private meeting with the Minister for London later this week and will discuss these issues further.   

       Baroness Casey's interim report on culture and standards of behaviour in the Metropolitan Police was published on Monday 17 October.

       In response Cllr Jas Athwal, London Councils' Executive member for Community Safety and Violence Against Women and Girls, said: "The interim findings of Baroness Casey’s report are stark, and there is work to be done to in response. I welcome the steps that the new Commissioner has already set out since taking office last month, including on tackling officer misconduct, improving professional standards and rebuilding Londoners’ trust.

       “Policing by consent is essential for a police service to work effectively. The Met’s mission to regain Londoners’ trust is in all our interests – including police officers who put their lives on the line each day to help keep us safe. A police service that Londoners feel they will be listened to and treated fairly and equally by, regardless of their sex, gender, ethnicity, beliefs, sexuality, disability, or any other characteristic, will better and more effectively serve our communities. I look forward to seeing what detailed steps the Met now sets out in response to the report’s interim findings.”

       On Friday 14 October, the Federation of Small Businesses announced the winners of the FSB's local government awards.

       The London Borough of Lewisham were announced as the all-England winner of the ‘COVID-19 Support and Recovery’ category for their comprehensive business support response during the pandemic.

       The winners of the London regional awards were:

       City of Westminster – Programme of Business Support

       LB Bexley – Future Ready

       LB Tower Hamlets – All Round Small Business Friendly.

       Congratulations to all.

       Read more about the awards here.

       As part of our commitment to improving our digital services, we have launched a website survey. This survey aims to deepen our understanding of the people who use the website, why they use it and what issues they face.

       This is an important first step in a wider review of our website to ensure it meets the needs of Londoners.

       Our short survey takes just two minutes to complete and will make a genuine difference in helping us deliver for London.

       Take part in the survey.