London Mayor Sadiq Khan

• IN just 11 weeks’ time London residents will have the opportunity to cast their votes for the London mayor and assembly members.

The first thing voters have to do is secure voter ID to be allowed to vote.

Camden Council have a good scheme. The second change is that for the first time the vote for the mayor will be on the basis of first-past-the-post and not by the transferable system.

There are a large number of candidates and so this might cause problems for Sadiq Khan. But the major issue is who do we vote for and on what basis. If on the national brand issue, the Labour Party, with its radical change on climate policy, may be in trouble.

The Tories nationally are in shambles and way behind in the polls. The Lib Dems? London-wise, the present mayor is unpopular with many over his ultra-low emission zone and low traffic neighbourhood policies.

Locally, as the CNJ repeatedly shows, the Labour Party is far from popular with its disastrous housing policies, treatment of the homeless and the fire safety of its tenants, to name but a few. A specific complaint is the failure of officers and some councillors to respond to residents and brush major issues under the carpet.

So the question is, what will determine how people vote? Many may just not bother. Labour canvassers in the coming weeks will have a hard job in Camden answering questions at he front door and on the phones at all three levels of Labour policies and performance.

As a local Labour voter in the borough for almost half a century, I am keeping my powder dry and my intentions private.

MICK FARRANT, NW5