Had the following letter about the Save the South London Line campaign published in this week’s Southwark News:

(you can see the Equal Life Chances For All document here: http://tiny.cc/Hqux0)

Boris Johnson has launched his ‘Equal Life Chances for All’ policy statement, which redefines City Hall’s definition of equality. Its aim is to increase equality across London and “focus help on those facing the greatest disadvantage in employment, housing, transport and participation in community life”. Importantly, it recognises that an equal society “removes the barriers that limit what people can do and be”, and sets out an Equality Framework for achieving a more equal London. For a borough with many of the most deprived parts of London, this is an important document for Southwark.

Southwark Council’s Peckham Programme acknowledges that “an important aspect of improving local prosperity is removing barriers and increasing our community’s access to employment, especially the good jobs in central London, the City and Docklands, areas clearly visible through the glass walls of the Peckham library lifts”.

Anyone living in South London knows full well the lack of decent transport connections. For those living around the ‘Burgess Black Hole’, (walk a mile in any direction from the park – you won’t reach a station) this is especially true, and why the Cross River Tram is such an important project. For many of those living in the deprived parts of the Aylesbury or North Peckham estates, the buses they depend upon are simply too unreliable to use for long rush hour journeys.

For areas such as Camberwell and Peckham to reach their full potential, it is essential that residents are connected and have access to employment centres in London. It is therefore crucial that Tfl and the Department for Transport (DfT) reverse their decision to cancel South London Line services to London Bridge and Victoria. If Boris Johnson is genuine in his commitment to increasing equality of opportunity he has to show leadership in first protecting our current links, and then enhancing them. He has to step in and stop allowing TfL and DfT to pass the buck.

The potential South London has to contribute to London’s future prosperity is immense – by investing in vital infrastructure Boris Johnson can claim a legacy of ending decades of under-investment. If he fails to step up and take action on this issue then he will have to take personal responsibility for allowing London to become less equal, with South London more isolated and disadvantaged.

It is also crucial for anyone living in South London to sign the online petition against the cuts at ‘tinyurl.com/SouthLondonLine’.