Greenwich has begun 2012 in style by being declared a Royal Borough and is now just a few months away from hosting some of the Olympic events in the summer. Greenwich residents and businesses have a great deal to be excited about. Once the world’s greatest sporting event has been and gone, whoever becomes London Mayor will still have a city of 7.5 million people to look after. Six months ago Woolwich was one of the places worst hit by the riots, and sadly it seemed that London and national media overlooked this. That week, across the city, Londoners were killed and injured and hundreds of businesses were either wrecked or destroyed. Rebuilding the lives of the people affected continues to take time, too long in fact, not least because the Metropolitan Police have still not provided the compensation they are legally required to give.

It’s important to remember that this May, Londoners are not just electing a Mayor but they are also electing a Mayor who will be the Police and Crime Commissioner for London, the only person who legally holds the Metropolitan Police to account. This election will decide the most important elected police chief in the country, and as a former Deputy Assistant Commissioner, with over 30 years experience in the police, I am the only candidate who has the knowledge, experience and expertise to do this effectively. Crime is the number one issue for Londoners and after last summer’s riots, and a sharp rise in robbery and burglary, it is my number one priority as well.

London’s transport is another issue that I am passionate about, and when it comes to Greenwich, river crossings are vital. Boris Johnson’s cable car is a fine example of the many vanity projects he has dreamt up without actually thinking them through and which ultimately do not address the real needs of Londoners. Whatever the merits of a cable car, it will not be a practical form of travel for most people wishing to cross the Thames on a regular basis. Most importantly it was misleading for Boris Johnson to say it would not cost taxpayers a penny when in fact commercial sponsorship only covers part of the multi-million pound cost.

There is a fundamental East West divide in London river crossings. Between Tower Bridge and the Woolwich ferry, there are very few crossings, all of which are frequently congested, and east of the ferry, there are no crossings at all until the QEII Bridge and the Dartford Tunnels. This is holding back economic development in a huge swathe of East and South East London.

A quick, easy and affordable win would be to upgrade the Woolwich ferry – modern vessels would increase capacity and reduce queuing time. That said, ultimately a new bridge or tunnel is necessary, but not one that only meets the needs of motorists and commercial vehicles. It must be cycle friendly and provide priority for bus services. We want to dissuade long distance drivers from using such as crossing as a shortcut so a toll to suppress demand from long distance drivers, but making it free for local residents and businesses should be considered.

Cycling is also a top issue for Londoners and Greenwich has many active cyclists, who have sadly been let down over the last two years over the fiasco relating to the Greenwich and Woolwich tunnels. Despite this, there are many more people who do not cycle regularly at the moment because they feel unsafe, as the traffic is too heavy, too fast, and not physically segregated from cyclists. Too many junctions present major hazards to cyclists. There is a danger of cycling continuing to be the preserve of the athletic and the brave rather than for everyone. We really need to do more to ensure that people of all ages and especially women feel safer cycling.

We need to reverse the current Mayor’s obsession with speeding-up traffic and his refusal to make junctions cycle-friendly as a consequence. Wherever possible, we need to put a physical barrier between cyclists and motorised transport, we need to give cyclists priority at junctions where segregation is not possible (a cycle only traffic light phase) and with priority given to every junction on so-called “cycle superhighways” to ensure cyclists are safe.

In the next couple of months I will be letting Londoners know exactly what the London Liberal Democrats promise to deliver if you vote for us. We have fresh ideas and serious solutions for London, and a radical Liberal Democrat manifesto that will show voters in the city that there is a real and really positive alternative to the tired, same old messages of the other two candidates.

Brian Paddick is the Liberal Democrat candidate for the London mayoral election in May. For information on the election and elections to the London Assembly, visit LondonElects.org.uk.

National Chip Week: clearly one of the very best PR stunts there has ever been. An excuse to eat chips all week is not to be sniffed at. And it’s Friday too, which has always been the best day for a chippy tea. Out of the paper, the smell of salt and vinegar making passers by jealous. Even if you’re not hungry, you can always steal a chip from someone (don’t do it to strangers, it’s frowned upon). But just one question, where in Greenwich are you going to get them? Here’s Greenwich.co.uk’s guide to the best of the local chip shop chips.

The Pier, Greenwich Church Street

Excellent. They’re very excellent at batter, you see. And sometimes pieces of batter fall into the portions of chips and it’s the chip shop version of getting a toy in your cereal. They’re good at crispy bits, they’re good at other things and they crack a smile and have a bit of a chat with you. Cheap as chips too (sorry). The only downside? Terrible, terrible curry sauce.

The Golden Chippy, Greenwich High Road

Regarded as some as the best chippy in Greenwich. I’d be inclined to agree if I didn’t live way on the other side. Good chips, good crispy bits and good prices. I can’t argue with popular opinion, these guys are excellent. If only they were closer to the town centre. Still, I can always walk there and back and burn off all of those chip-shaped calories.

Peter’s Fish Bar, Woolwich Road

OK, so they’re not strictly in Greenwich. But here’s the clincher: they deliver and that’s very unusual for a chippy. Sadly, that’s where my love affair with this particular chip shop ends. They’re not terrible, but the chips are never quite as bang on as you’d like them to be. A little dry, a little bland, not a huge amount of crispy bits and only just above average. I really want to love them – they’re the nearest chippy to me and the potential to have fish and chips delivered makes me very happy indeed. But I’m left a bit disappointed by them. Don’t totally write Peter’s off, though. They also own the greasy spoon next door and they knock up the finest bacon and egg sandwich this side of the river.

The Great British Fish & Chip Shop, King William Walk

When this place opened, it looked a little posher than the rest. And on the surface, it was. They’ve got swanky fish options lined up on the menu (look, chips and scallops is posh), there isn’t a single neon star blu-tacked to the walls, and it all felt a little more upmarket. But that lasted about a week. Now it looks tired. The chips were dry and tasteless, even with extra salt and vinegar once I got home. They’re expensive too. My first ever trip to the Great British Fish & Chip Shop will probably be my last. They do, however, sell the popular Goddard’s Pies.

Where else?

Mr. Fast Fry are confusing me – they’ve stopped delivering and they’ve been shut when I’ve gone to check them out. I’m not sure if this is temporary or not but I can’t comment on their chips if they’re never open. If you can cope with the flashing disco lights in London’s danciest kebab house, the Cutty Sark restaurant actually serves up a decent portion of chips. Certainly the best of the many kebab shops and takeaways in the area.

If you’re eating in, the Old Brewery’s chips are well regarded and the the Rivington Bar and Grill do a cracking chip. Crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside and it comes with a really tasty smoked ketchup that I could probably eat with a spoon. Actually, they’d win it for me. They do takeaway chippy lunches too, all wrapped in a nice box.

Where are you getting your chips from this week?

With all of the excellent bakeries in Greenwich, you’d think getting a brownie would be easy. Not so, surprisingly. You can’t move for cupcakes these days but I found just three indy bakeries selling squidgy brownies on Sunday.

For me a brownie needs to be dense and a little gooey in the middle. It needs to be heavier than a chocolate sponge. I’m a brownie purist so I don’t want bells and whistles in my brownies (for goodness sake, stop putting Oreos in them), just chocolate will suit me fine.

So which one was best?

Black Vanilla, College Approach

Oh, I truly wanted this one to be a winner. I’ve been excited about visiting Black Vanilla, which just opened last week in College Approach, but I knew when I was buying it that it wasn’t going to take the top spot. It looked dry and it was. It tasted of cocoa rather than chocolate and was actually pretty small – it was too thin to get a decent squidge. And the most expensive at £2.50.

But, to get to the cake counter you have to walk past the ice cream, and that looks phenomenal. I’m not discounting Black Vanilla altogether, I think they’re a fabulous addition to Greenwich and were very friendly when I popped in.

Rhodes, College Approach

They call their brownie the ‘best in the world’ and while the hyperbole irritates me, it was pretty good. It looked amazing. Thick, stodgy, unhealthy. Still soft in the middle despite being flaky on the top. Yep, this is one mighty fine brownie. Surprisingly not bitter despite it being so dark. It was the cheapest as well – just £1.80. Getting anything tasty under two quid is a bit of a challenge.

The downside? Not once have I seen the staff smile in Rhodes. I come here for the cake and I take it away rather than staying. A bit of a chat and a smile wouldn’t go amiss.

The Real Baking Company, Greenwich Market

A firm favourite in Greenwich Market, they were getting reading to close up when I visited. Still, I was greeted with a smile and a bit of a chat (they must have been FREEZING after standing outside all day).

The brownie was £2.40 so certainly not cheap, but worth the money. There was an unusual aftertaste to this one. Cherries, or some sort of sweet fruit. It’s certainly no bad thing. The addition of chocolate chips was welcome, too. You could eat one of these in one go, and be very happy that you did.

Verdict

It’s absolutely a tie between The Real Baking Company and Rhodes. If the staff in Rhodes could crack a smile, they’d just edge it for me. Which means obviously you should try both and make up your own mind.

Who do you think does the best chocolate brownie in Greenwich?

And if you love chocolate, why not check out  the chocolate blog from the same publisher as greenwich.co.uk