Farah London’s ‘Bring London Back’: An Analysis

Farah London is an independent candidate running for mayor of London on the 6th of May 2021. Her campaign ‘Bring London Back’ is built on six key areas: Housing, Economy, Policing, Transport, Diversity and the Environment.

The London Affordable to its People (Housing)

• Build affordable housing

• Simplify planning rules

• Increase development of private and public sector projects, including on brownfield sites

• Commit to council tax and seek an exemption for tenants aged under 25

• Council Tax is a type of property tax which taxes the residents a certain percentage depending on the value of their property with more expensive properties paying more tax.

• The council uses it to pay for local services such as schools, rubbish collection, roads and street lights.

Farah London has committed to building more affordable homes in an attempt to tackle the housing crisis in London. This housing crisis is a major issue for young people who struggle to get onto the property ladder so this policy may help with that.

Her council tax policy should also be of interest to young people as she has directly targeted her policy at them. While there is already a council tax exemption for students, she wants to extend this to all under 25s in order to alleviate the financial strains that Covid-19 has caused.

The London of Opportunity (Economy)

• See London’s tech cluster become the world’s biggest hub outside the Silicon Valley

• Upgrade London’s connectivity

• by expanding full fibre broadband

• Deepen London’s talent pool

• by encouraging the uptake of free courses of coding and AI in educational centres open for all ages and backgrounds

• Provide grants for vulnerable children to have laptops and Wi-Fi access for schoolwork

Farah London wants to make London the new global tech city. She thinks that Covid-19 has sped up the transition to a digital economy and believes that it is time for London to upgrade and be at the forefront of this technological revolution.

One of her key policies in this area is she wants to deepen the talent pool in London. This policy is aimed at all ages and wants more people to take up coding and artificial intelligence courses.

She also wants to provide a grant for vulnerable children which would provide them with laptops and Wi-Fi access for schoolwork. As we have seen throughout Covid-19, where schooling was heavily digitalised, the need for equipment and good WI-FI became even more apparent and it was often children from disadvantaged backgrounds who did not have access to these resources. This policy is aimed at making sure everyone has the equal opportunity to succeed in their education.

The London Free from the Grip of Crime (Police)

• Reverse the change to close 38 of 73 police stations

• 6000 more police officers and special constables

• Equipment to detect drugs and knives

• Work closely with communities to tackle the core issues behind youth violence

• Introduce youth empowerment initiatives

• Improve Police pay and benefits, including private medical care

Youth crime is at the core of her policing policy and believes that the main way of tackling this issue is through more investment. She believes that by closely working with the communities and listening to their needs they will be able to come up with unique solutions to this issue.

Furthermore, she wants to introduce youth empowerment initiatives which aim at generating the next generation of ‘all stars’.

The London of a World-Class Public Transport (Transport)

• Secure funding from government

• Generate income from a state-of-the-art advertising platform across our transport system

• Reduce congestion charge from £15 to £12 and 5 days a week, introduce short stay tariffs

• Make London the best city to own electric vehicles

• Continue to support iconic black cab trade

Farah London focuses on those who own cars with policies such as dropping the congestion charge from £15 to £12 and making London the best city to own electric cars. Only 30% of 16–24-year-olds have a full driving licence in London making some of these policies potentially less relevant for young people. Nonetheless, the overall aim is to increase funding for TfL which may allow for lower ticket prices and thus allow young people to increase their use of public transport.

The London That Celebrates Diversity (Diversity)

• Welcome the first black museum

• Create a London that is comfortable protesting against racial discrimination, as it is celebrating Winston Churchill

Farah London wants to emphasise the beauty of diversity that London has. She also wants to celebrate that diversity by opening the first black museum, to recognise the beautiful cultural impact the black community has contributed to London.

The London with Clean Air and Water (Environment)

• Implementing a long-term Environmental Protection Drive across London

• Improve air quality and cleaning up Thames

• Protect bee population

• Change the landscape of London with micro algae installations across London

• Clean air within days of installation

Her goal is to become the greenest Mayor yet. Climate change and the environment are some of the biggest issues for young people and Farah London offers some of the most innovative and modern solutions to these problems. Her most innovative policy is the installation of micro algae across London, which she claims will clean the air within days of installation by consuming pollutant gases in the air and releasing oxygen back into the atmosphere.

Jonas Volkwein (Head of Policy and News Analysis)