Mayor's 'joke' over papers backfires

An investigation is being held into whether Ken Livingstone destroyed sensitive documents to avoid disclosing them under the new Freedom of Information Act.

It was sparked by the Mayor's apparently jokey remarks that a "shredding week" was held at City Hall before the law came into force on 1 January.

Under the Act, public bodies can be ordered to disclose documents previously kept under wraps and it is a criminal offence to destroy data if a valid request has been made to release it.

The Liberal Democrats on the London Assembly have reported Mr Livingstone to the Freedom of Information commissioner after comments he made at a public meeting last month. The Mayor said he had received 257 applications for information this year but added: "There is almost nothing juicy in there - we never minute anything interesting. If there was, it was lost during shredding week just before 1 January 2005."

A spokeswoman for the Mayor accused his critics of " mischiefmaking" and failing to appreciate his sense of humour.