Sir Ian resigned as Met Commissioner last month after Mayor of London Boris Johnson told him he wanted to see a change of leadership. His contract was originally due to run until 2010.

According to reports, Sir Ian will receive the remaining value of his contract in a £295,000 lump sum, on top of a £168,000 annual pension.

Green Party AM Jenny Jones has accused Mayor Johnson of leaving Londoners ”paying for two police commissioners but only getting the services of one.”

Jones added: “If the Mayor had consulted other parts of London Government about both the original decision to dismiss Sir Ian and the subsequent decision to compensate him, we probably wouldn’t be in this situation.”

LibDem spokesperson Dee Doocey sad there was “no reason whatsoever to pay off somebody who has resigned.”

“If any other employee told their boss they were resigning, there would be absolutely no question of them being given a payoff, let alone a bonus. Why should there be one rule for the chief of police and another for every other worker?”

“In this economic climate it is frankly a disgrace that this is even being considered.”

The plan, which outlines five ‘core projects’ the Mayor will be working on, is expected to work alongside existing police operations such as Blunt 2. The Mayor’s ‘core projects’ are:

“1. Giving young offenders in prison for the first time the life tools that will enable careers other than professional criminality. It makes sense on all levels, even financially.

2. Teachers can only educate kids if they are actually in school. Truancy needs more co-ordinated and assertive effort. 

3. Only a tiny minority of children in care go to university. They are much more likely to end up in prison. We want to change these numbers.

4. Their behaviour shows that too many young people lack self-respect and character. Organisations like the Scouts, Girl Guides and Police Cadets know a lot about character, and we need their help.

5. Sport can unify and redeem. Healthy bodies lead to healthy minds, and we want more sporty, active kids in our city. 
In addition to these themes, the Mayor wants to establish specialist Mayoral Academies across London to help equip the city and young people with the skills needed for the future.”

City Hall officials are stressing that the plan represents the Mayor’s initial response to the issue and Londoners are invited to share their views in a consultation process which runs until 16th December.

Speaking at today’s launch Mayor Johnson said “a small but significant minority have seriously disengaged from society and I believe we must respond in two ways. Firstly through highly visible policing to deter criminality and secondly through measures to address the complex root causes of crime, exclusion and violence.”

“vital that we address the soaring levels of re-offending and the ridiculous situation where first time offenders are more likely to leave custody and commit crime than find a job and contribute to society. We must also do much more to give all children a decent start in life. That means better parenting, more work to address truancy and more opportunities for young people to develop their character and through education and sporting activities.”

After last month being urged to consider his language about youths in the capital the Mayor also commented that “the majority of our young people who are well balanced and full of ambition.”

Green Party Assembly Member Jenny Jones said Johnson’s plans don’t go far enough, commenting: “effective community service schemes would not only improve community safety for all Londoners, they are also likely to be much cheaper for the tax payer. The Mayor should work with ministers to deliver such a scheme as quickly as possible.”

Londoners wishing to comment on the Mayor’s plans can do so via the www.london.gov.uk website.

The Merton Partnership - a multi-agency partnership of local stakeholders, including bodies such as the council, the police and healthcare providers - say the plan will set out a blueprint of the borough’s aspirations for a safe, strong, healthy and vibrant borough.

The partnership is asking for residents’ comments to help it shape a plan that gives local people a clear vision of what they want Merton to be like ten years from the plan’s launch. If you live, work, go to school or are a regular visitor to the borough, the council is keen to hear your views on what you want Merton to be like and what can be done to make it a better place. 

Councillor David Williams, Leader of Merton Council and Chairman of the Merton Partnership said: “To ensure we can keep delivering the best services at good value for money we need to know what residents want, so please do get involved and help us build a community plan that works for you.”

A dedicated web page has been launched to gather people’s comments and the partnership is also building on the results of other public consultations and surveys which have taken place such as the annual residents’ survey.

In addition to sting vehicles fitted with covert cameras, Hammersmith & Fulham (H&F) Motor Vehicle Crime Squad is using electrical equipment with tracking devices as bait to catch car criminals, they are also placing decoy mopeds and motorbikes across the borough.

To lure the thieves officers leave high value items such as laptops and sat navs on display in the decoy cars. If a thief steals the equipment they are caught on camera and sprayed with unique DNA. The indelible spray is traceable on the criminal even after months of washing off and is even transferred onto the electrical equipment helping officers catch middle men and ‘fences’ who handle the stolen goods.

H&F Borough Commander, Chief Superintendent Kevin Hurley, said: “We have worked closely with Hammersmith & Fulham Council in obtaining and deploying this equipment. The results are evident, we are arresting and convicting those responsible, and vehicle crime is plummeting across the borough.” 

The council helped to fund the equipment used in the sting operations and the latest stats prove thefts from a motor vehicle are down in the borough by 36 per cent on last year.

Cllr Greg Smith, H&F Council Cabinet Member for Crime & Anti-Social Behaviour, warned that: “Every crook who eyes up someone else’s property on the back seat of a car now needs to question whether it is a Police sting vehicle. Crooks who do chose to steal from unmarked cars will find a huge array of evidence against them when they are taken to court.”

The cameras, which can be clipped to the officer’s ear, include a hard drive which records audio and video evidence helping to successfully prosecute wrongdoers. 

Havering Council has contributed £16,000 to the scheme to fund six cameras in the borough. Cllr Peter Gardner, Cabinet Member for Community Safety, said the cameras would “opefully make Havering even safer for people who want to enjoy a night out.”

Under an initiative announced yesterday by City Hall and Transport for London twenty one double-decker buses on a North London bus route will be fitted with new CCTV technology which will allow live pictures to be transmitted to the Centrecomm control centre which is staffed by officers from TfL and the Met Police.

Announcing the launch of the pilot scheme Mayor Johnson said he was “determined to banish the sad minority of hoodlums and trouble makers that have blighted our buses.”

Currently the bus fleet’s CCTV can only record images to be downloaded at a later time in the event of an incident. 

Mr Johnson added that live access to CCTV footage “will mean we can play a far more effective role in sending police officers to sort out troublemakers. If this trial is successful then we will consider rolling out the system on other routes as part of our campaign to stamp out the casual disorder that led to a culture of fear on public transport.

Mr Johnson also promised that his Youth Violence Strategy would include ‘hard hitting’ new plans to tackle crime.

Speaking today Johnson said he was “filled with despair every time I read about another fatal stabbing or shooting It is a tragedy that 27 teenagers have become victims of knife and gun crime this year. Enough is enough - I am adamant that this violence must stop.”

Announcing that his strategy will be launched in November, Mayor Johnson stressed the importance of councils, schools and police working together to produce “a coordinated response to youth violence in London.”

“There will be several themes within the strategy including employment skills and education, which are vital in providing young people with the opportunities needed to succeed in life.”

Inviting Londoners to take part in the survey MPA Vice Chairman Kit Malthouse said ”this is your chance to be heard, so please take it. Let us know what you think about the Met, the MPA and any crime or policing issues that bother or enthuse you, so we have a better idea of what you want from us.”

The survey is available on the MPA website and is also available in hardcopy by calling 020 7202 0063.

The announcement was made during a visit to Bexleyheath  by Mayor Johnson, Transport Commissioner Peter Hendy and Metropolitan Police Commander Rod Jarman.

The Mayor also confirmed that 11 inner London borough-based policing teams, introduced by former Mayor Ken Livingstone, will be made permanent after a 13.6 fall in bus related crime in boroughs where the teams operate.

Speaking to journalists yesterday the Mayor said the pilot teams “have had great initial success, cutting the number of robberies by over a third where they have operated, and I am now working with the Metropolitan police and TfL to get them rolled to other boroughs where I hope they will have an equally impressive impact.”

The teams are funded jointly by the Met and Transport for London. According to figures issued by City Hall the costs for the new teams will be £11.3m with the force providing £2.1m of this sum. 

Transport Commissioner Peter Hendy said the success of the teams had seen “pensioners using the buses again and young people behaving with more respect across the bus network.”

The announcement came as members of the London Assembly claimed that Johnson’s vow to freeze the GLA’s council tax precept is adding “considerable financial pressure” to functional bodies including the Metropolitan Police Authority and Transport for London.

John Biggs AM, Chair of the Budget and Performance Committee, said: “Value for money is a glib phrase, but a genuine drive towards greater value for money needs positive direction as to how the money should be applied in order to achieve a clear set of outcomes.  Not only will this help us - and the wider world - to judge progress but it will also help the Mayor’s team to judge their own success and maintain direction.”

The Committee says it has “concerns that a lack of clear guidance on the priorities and direction of the new administration is causing uncertainty and could mean that the GLA group will have to ‘retro-fit’ business plans to budgets.”

The Mayor also announced that London’s existing Safer Transport teams will be boosted by an additional seven officers.

Speaking this morning the Mayor said he was “proud” to be chairing the meeting and said it was “vital that the Mayor takes responsibility for making our capital a safer place.”

Mr Johnson opened the meeting by paying tribute both to Sir Ian and the force as a whole and expressed his admiration for officers across all areas of police work who contribute to making the capital safer. But he was repeatedly pressed over his failure to consult the MPA before speaking to Blair last week.

Speaking after the meeting Jenny Jones, who also represents the Green Party on the London Assembly, said it was “important” there was consensus on the MPA about how to police the capital.  She added: “the way the Mayor usurped the authority of the MPA over Ian Blair’s resignation broke that consensus, as he failed to listen to a range of Londoners’ views, as represented on the MPA.”

In the wake of Sir Ian’s resignation last week the Commissioner’s report, which outlines progress by the Metropolitan Police Service in delivering its objectives, was presented by Deputy Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson who is widely expected to succeed Blair in the top job.

Sir Paul told members of the Authority that both knife and gun the capital were down as was youth related crime and that the high levels of youths killed in knife crime was a “mystery” when seen against the downwards trends. He also announced that tactics previously used to tackle serious and organised crime were being deployed against those suspected of gang related activity.

Citing his own figures that only 2% of youths stopped were found to carry knives, members raised concerns that “rudeness” by officers and a presumption of guilt on the part of those being searched could undermine relationships between the Met and younger people.

Mayor Johnson was quizzed over plans for an investigation into “the progression of BME candidates through the ranks of the service, the relation between staff associations and management, and the extent to which there is visible and effective leadership around race and faith issues.”

Some MPA members warned that for many complainants the body was seen as part of the problem and suggested that an independent investigation might be needed. MPA officials insist that a majority of inquiry members will be appointed from outside the body to reflect those concerns.

Although it attracted only minimal discussion, here was some criticism of plans to pay London Assembly members an allowance for their work on the Authority.

The changes will see AMs sitting on the body earn an additional £9,327. There are also additional allowances of £11,346 for Chairmen of the Strategic & Operational Policing; Finance & Resources; Communities, Equalities & People and Corporate Governance committees and £3,766 for Chairmen of approved formal sub-committees.

An allowance of £55,000 is to be paid to the Chairman of the Authority however as the Mayor has taken on this role it can instead be paid to his designated Vice Chairman, currently Kit Malthouse.

A report presented to the meeting said the new allowances, which are due to take effect from 10th October, are intended to reflect “that whilst assembly members are paid to be assembly members, those who serve on the MPA have accepted an additional commitment.”