Shopping for Westminster's votes on Oxford Street

A decision taken by the mayor of London earlier this year to ban traffic from Oxford Street has become a political issue in Westminster as the Conservatives and Labour fight for control of the local authority.

The city's council is one of 32 London boroughs that will be elected on 7 May.

Sir Sadiq Khan's plan was approved in March with the aim of completing the scheme by the end of the summer this year.

But the scheme to pedestrianise Europe's busiest shopping street from Orchard Street to Great Portland Street was previously rejected by Westminster City Council.

The Labour-run council cited opposition from local residents.

The Conservatives, who ran Westminster City Council from its creation in 1965 until 2022, raised their concerns as they campaigned for votes in the election.

Paul Swaddle, leader of the Tory group on the council, told BBC London: "Residents across Westminster, not just in the immediate vicinity of Oxford Street, but right across the borough, are really concerned about how is it going to be accessible.

"How is it going to be safe?

"Because at the moment the plans have none of the detail about how it's going to be policed, how emergency services will access, how deliveries will access, and how our less-abled residents will actually get up and down this mile-long street."

Labour seized the flagship Tory council four years ago for the first time in the history of the borough.

They credited the win in part to the £6m Marble Arch Mound they claimed was representative of a local authority that had lost its way.

The Labour council leader, Adam Hug, declined to say whether his party's battle to retain control would have been easier if the mayor of London hadn't seized control of Oxford Street.

"Look, there are lots of different issues at play in Westminster," he told BBC London.

"We are focused on our record of delivery.

"We're standing up for local residents, making our voice heard to the mayor and to the government, but working effectively with them.

"We are getting on with the business of governing Westminster and we want to do that for four more years."

Away from Oxford Street, the borough has some of the wealthiest and some of the most deprived wards in the country.

The Greens and the Lib Dems don't currently have any councillors in Westminster. Reform UK has two.

All five parties are contesting seats in every ward and hoping to win seats in the election on 7 May.

A full list of candidates standing for election to Westminster City Council can be found here.

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