The Green Party’s Jenny Jones launched her campaign to become Mayor of London with a promise to end the reign of Greater London Authority (GLA) fat cats.
Outside City Hall the former Deputy Mayor declared her aim to make London the ‘Fair Pay City’, starting with a 10:1 maximum pay ratio for employees of organisations within the GLA group.
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Jones said: "My campaign to become Mayor will be focused on bringing fresh ideas to London. Making the capital into the ‘Fair Pay City’ is just one aspect of our fight for a fairer, cleaner, greener capital."
Under the plans, which represent one aspect of the Party’s mini-manifesto released today, those working for organisations such as City Hall, Transport for London and the police could not pay the lowest paid workers less than 10 times the amount of the highest paid.
During Boris Johnson’s Mayorship the number of people within the GLA group earning more than 10 times the Living Wage has risen by 56% (from 62 to 97). The Chief Executive of Crossrail, Rob Holden, earns £857,134: a figure approximately 55 times the Living Wage (1).
Jones said: "A 10:1 maximum pay ratio would seriously reduce the pay gap in our city. It is unacceptable to use the economic crisis to defend paying workers less than the amount needed to support a family at the same as paying out colossal salaries to chief executives."
"The Green Party has shown in London and elsewhere that when elected it can reduce inequality, promote fairness and help create a better city. Every vote counts in next year’s elections, with Londoners being able to chose their Mayor and their London Assembly Members – elected under proportional representation.
"The campaign to make London a ‘Fair Pay City’ shows that as Mayor I would stand up for ordinary Londoners, institute more responsible financial governance of the capital and help create a better place for those who live and visit the capital."
Notes to editors
You can find a list of Jenny’s policies here: http://tinyurl.com/greenpolicies2012
Jones, a London Assembly Member since its creation in 2000, and the Green Party were instrumental in the introduction of the London Living Wage-enough to provide a family with the essentials in the capital-in 2005 and have been at the forefront of scrutinising the Mayor and councils.
As well as instituting the 10:1 campaign, Jones promised as Mayor she would ensure that more London companies committed to pay the London Living Wage and commit to the 10:1 ratio themselves.
A fifth of Londoners earn less than the Living Wage (2) -roughly £15k a year.
Earlier this week, Green Assembly Members exposed the £6.2 million cost of local government chief executive pay in the capital (3), and the Mayor was recently forced to back down on his wage freeze to the lowest paid City Hall workers after awarding two top advisers a total increase of £73,000. A Green Party initiative to award a 4% increase to the lowest paid at a cost of £50,000 won cross-party support.
The thinktank One Society estimate that the average employee at the bottom of FTSE 100 companies earns 306 times less than their chief executive (4).
According to the High Pay Commission, FTSE 350 directors’ total earnings rose on average by 130% over the past decade while their companies’ market capitalisations improved by just 8% (5).
The Institute for Public Pay Research found that 78% of British people would support government action to reduce the gap between high and low earners (6).
Before the last election, David Cameron pledged to institute a 20:1 maximum pay ratio in public sector organisations (7).
The party currently has two London Assembly Members: Jenny Jones and Darren Johnson.
Membership of the London Green Party doubled between the mayoral election in May 2008 and September 2011.
The party is standing a full slate of candidates for all 25 seats on the London Assembly. You can find the list here: http://tinyurl.com/greencandidates
The Green Party of England and Wales promotes the policies of ecological sustainability, a fairer more stable economy, a more equal society, a higher standard of democracy and accountability of politicians to the communities they serve, and social justice on the global level as well as in our own country.
Caroline Lucas became the UK’s first Green MP in the 2010 General Election.
The Green Party is now the largest party on Brighton and Hove Council.
Links
www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/corporate/tfl-annual-report-2010-11-final-interactive.pdf
www.lvsc.org.uk/media/24618/lvsc_closing_the_gap_final.pdf
www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23996457-council-chiefs-defy-cuts-call-with-pound-62m-pay.do
www.onesociety.helencross.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/AThirdOfAPercent_OneSociety_29Sept2011_Final.pdf
http://highpaycommission.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/HPC-DPperformance.pdf
www.ippr.org/images/media/files/publication/2011/06/getting-what-we-desrve_June2011_7617.pdf
www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/apr/08/david-cameron-public-sector-pay