2255 Hrs GMT
London
Tuesday 03 November 2009
Khoodeelaar! Pointing out again that Boris Johnson has been abusing the position he holds in the Onion at the expense of the collective image of the people of London.
We do so by citing a blog that has been referring in the past week to the Callous Tower in the isle of Dogs that Boris Johnson has been peddling.
In the blog there are references [but no access to any cited fourth party Internet items] to some ordinarily CRASSrole playing timeservers who too condemn Boris Johnson for using Crossrail as a tool to fun a bribery operation.
We use the two words ‘bribery operation’ advisedly.
We also do this in full awareness of the assertion made in the past 6 months by Simon Milton to the effect that he, Milton, was the brain [or could it conceivably be a plural ‘brains’!] of Boris Johnson.
We conclude as based on that assertion that Simon Milton would, if anything, be OK with such an operation, given that he has NOT even now, all these years later, disassociated himself from the role played by the Tories at Westminster City Council in that GRAVE robbery.
We quote the plain texts from that page [see URL immediately below this]
http://www.estatesgazette.com/blogs/property-planning/2009/10/boris-cuts-crossrail-levy---payments-set-to-quadruple.html
Boris cuts Crossrail levy - payments set to quadruple...
By Patrick Clift on October 27, 2009 2:25 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
The mayor has promised developers a discount on his Crossrail levy in new guidance today.
It says Boris Johnson is to allow developers to pay just 80% of his £20 per sq ft tax, for projects starting before 31 March next year, in order to encourage development.
But hang on. Almost every new scheme to stump up for the levy so far has had its payment negotiated down to just 20%, so in effect developers could see their contribution quadruple... hardly a great saving, or a great incentive.
By sheer coincidence, the only scheme to pay 80% of the levy, some £4m, is Commercial Estates Group's Columbus Tower in Canary Wharf, which by sheer, mind-blowing coincidence was the first and only scheme to have been approved by the mayor under his new powers to determine planning applications.
Not that there is any suggestion that the planning permission was sold for Crossrail money. Well, actually there is, from Labour's London Assembly Member John Biggs, who questions the mayor here, here and here. Oh, and here.
But Boris has denied any wrong-doing, insisting planning policy was followed and there is "no question of this application being bought".
Meanwhile, developers in 9-Elms, it was confirmed today, will be spared the levy altogether, but will pay a near-identical amount to London's other great infrastructure challenge, the extension of the Northern Line.
Tags: Boris Johnson, Crossrail
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