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 (see Greater London Authority). Since 4 May 2008, Conservative Boris Johnson has held the position. Previously, the position was held by Ken Livingstone from the creation of the role on 4 May 2000, until his succession by Johnson.

The role, created in 2000 after the London devolution referendum, was the first directly-elected mayor in the United Kingdom. The Mayor of London is also referred to as the London Mayor, a form which helps to avoid confusion with the Lord Mayor of the City of London, the ancient and now mainly ceremonial role in the geographically small City of London. The Mayor of London is mayor of Greater London which has a population of over 7.5 million.

Elections
The Mayor of London is elected by Supplementary Vote for a fixed term of four years, with elections taking place in May. As with most elected posts in the UK, there is a deposit, in this case of £10,000, returnable on the candidate's winning at least 5% of the first-choice votes cast.

List of Mayors

 * Ken Livingstone - Independant 2000 - 2004
 * Ken Livingstone - Labour 2004 - 2008
 * Boris Johnson - Conservative 2008 - Present

Initiatives
Initiatives taken by Ken Livingstone as Mayor of London included the London congestion charge on private vehicles using city centre London on weekdays, the creation of the London Climate Change Agency, the London Energy Partnership and the founding of the international Large Cities Climate Leadership Group, now known as C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group. The Congestion charge led to many new buses being introduced across London.

They have also included the London Partnerships Register which was a voluntary scheme without legal force for same-sex couples to register their partnership, and paved the way for the introduction by the United Kingdom Parliament of civil partnerships. Unlike civil partnerships, the London Partnerships Register was open to heterosexual couples who favour a public commitment other than marriage.

As Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone was also a key player and supporter of the London Olympics in 2012, and is known to always encourage sport in London; especially when sport can be combined with helping UK charities-like The London Marathon and British 10K charity races. In the summer of 2007 he brought the World famous Tour de France cycle race to London.

In May 2008, Boris Johnson introduced a new transport safety initiative to put 440 high-visibility police officers on bus hubs and the immediate vicinity. A ban on alcohol on Tube, bus, Docklands Light Railway, and tram services and stations across the capital was announced.

Also in May 2008, Boris Johnson announced the closure of The Londoner newspaper, saving approximately £2.9 million. A percentage of this saving will be spent on planting 10,000 new street trees.

Salary
The Mayor of London's salary is one that ranks alongside that of a government Cabinet minister's. The current salary is £137,579 per year.