There's been an outburst of media horror over the disclosure that Met officers have spent £35,000 calling the speaking clock over the past two years. True, the horror has been pretty giggly thanks to the old adage that a policeman can always tell you the right time. I got caught up in this mini-furore. Asked by LBC's Nick Ferrari what I made of it, I wondered if it might be because a small number of officers had become inordinately fond of the clock. Perhaps it was a bit like teenage lovers. You know:
"Bye, then...."
"Bye...."
"Hang up then..."
"No, you hang up..."
"No you..."
"At the third stroke..."
Of course, the story was silly. As the Guardian's James Ball pointed out, spread between 35,000 officers £35,000 in two years isn't much at all. Still, let's dignify it as a reminder that the Met needs to be, and be seen to be, efficient and driven by the right priorities. The more respect it enjoys, the more co-operation it gets from the public and the better it is at battling crime.
Accountability is part of that equation. This is supposed to be enhanced by the new relationship between the London mayor and the Met, though it doesn't seem to me that the arrangement - described with welcome clarity at MayorWatch - will necessarily make much difference in the capital.
Boris Johnson says it will enable him to keep, "An even closer eye on every aspect of policing, ensuring more than ever that the crimes that most concern Londoners are addressed." But Met commissioners under both him and his predecessor Ken Livingstone have implemented policies in line with those politicians' wishes.
I'm more interested in the new scrutiny set-up, which centres on a London Assembly committee that will meet for the first time next week. The line from the Assembly as an institution is that it will be a more effective body than the now defunct Metropolitan Police Authority, though at least two Assembly members who sat on the MPA have expressed doubts.
The impact of the reforms as a whole may depend heavily on the attitudes and aptitudes of those putting them into effect. With crime sure to be a major election theme, expect every mayoral candidate to express strong views about how they would require policing in London to improve. It remains to be seen if will include spending less time with the voice of Sara Mendes Da Costa.
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London blogosphere
From The Great Wen:
I've just come across a treasure trove on You Tube of old Rank Look At Life newsreels, each ten-minutes long and looking at different aspects of London life. There are some real treats to be found.
Which is putting it mildly. Watch those reels here.
Coming up
It's Mayor's Question Time on Wednesday - Boris will be hoping it isn't one of his last - and the new police and crime committee makes its debut on Thursday. I'll be blogging and tweeting. Thanks for reading.
