Yay – Boris!

Ok, I guess I should blog about this.

Four years ago, pretty much to the day, I wrote about how tragic it was that Londoners couldn’t think of anyone better to elect than Boris Johnson.

My immediate gripe with the man, brilliant writer as he is, was that he seemed totally ignorant about Sudan. But, I guess, only a small fault for a man destined to lead our fair nation’s capital.

Now that he has been re-elected, I find that I have completely reformed my opinion of him and think that he probably is the best man for the job. He is dynamic, enthusiastic, charismatic and above all sincere.

Let us not under-estimate this final point, in these days of the public’s disconnect with politicians, for I feel that the ‘genuineness’ of Boris is one of the reasons that he got re-elected. His grilling on Newsnight a few weeks back, along with labour candidate Ken Livingstone, is a case-in-point. Jeremy Paxman got them both to agree to disclose their salary. The following day, Johnson disclosed that he earns £240,000, not all of which comes from his Mayorship. Livingstone’s response was inherently confusing, and I still have not the foggiest idea what he earns, through the murky corporate structure that he seems to have established.

It is this directness of the Boris brands that so appealed to Londoners, and one that I am increasingly warming to.

Yes, I hate the principles that Boris stands for. It is patently wrong to slash the top-rate of tax (from 50% to 45%), a move that Boris supported, when the rest the country is having to tighten its belt. And it is a load of baloney such a move was good for the economy. A high tax rate does not mean richies would take their money elsewhere. And, even if they do, so what? The backbone of the economy is small and medium sized enterprises, and not the millionaires, as the Tories might have you believe. So give them more money (the SMEs, of course, not the Tories).

But one cannot help but admire Boris’s candour, and his tireless energy, which is why I am glad he has been re-elected.

Of course, another reason he has been re-elected, which is worth mentioning here, is that most of the media is his old buddies. I have yet to read a truly anti-Boris article – the worst seems to be calling him a “lovable buffoon” or a ”tousle-haired clown”, both of which could be construed as compliments – whereas the Oxbridge media are awash with slights against Livingstone, even the Labour rags.

So, I’m glad that Boris has been elected mayor, as long as he has no dealings whatsoever with Sudan and keeps his somewhat dubious views on tax policy to a minimum. But should he be prime minister? Hell no.

Tags: Boris Johnson, Ian Livingston, Jeremy Paxman, London, mayor, newsnight, sudan