Zac Goldsmith named Conservative candidate for London mayor

Richmond Park and North Kingston MP Zac Goldsmith has been named as the Conservative candidate for London Mayor.

Goldsmith, who is a strong environmentalist and staunch opponent of the expansion of Heathrow airport, won a ballot with 70.6% of the vote.

He beat London Assembly Member Andrew Boff, MEP Syed Kamall and London’s deputy mayor for crime and policing Stephen Greenhalgh. His main rival in the mayoral contest is Tooting Labour MP and former junior minister Sadiq Khan.

Goldsmith said: “We have seen record investment in our transport network, but we will need to continue that investment just to avoid grinding to a halt – while at the same time continuing to bear down on the cost of travel so that it delivers value for money for Londoners."

“Our living environment is facing increasing pressure, and we will need to protect, enhance and improve access to our green spaces, as well as radically improving the quality of the air that we breathe. But the biggest challenge of all is the housing crisis. Londoners are being priced out of their city and we will need a step change in the number of homes built, and the manner in which they are built.”

Goldsmith, who is the son of late billionaire Sir James Goldsmith, is an advocate of community permission for new homes and supports the pressure group Create Streets, which campaigns for more traditional housing and less high-rise building.