Michael Bloomberg

Newly knighted Michael Bloomberg denies he wants to be mayor of London

Anglophile former mayor of New York insists he has ‘zero chance’ and ‘zero interest’ in succeeding Boris Johnson
Vice President Biden, former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and British Ambassador Peter Westmacott, after the ceremony at which Bloomberg received his honorary knighthood
 Joe Biden, Michael Bloomberg and Peter Westmacott after the ceremony at which Bloomberg received his honorary knighthood. Photograph: Carrie Dorean/British Embassy
Michael Bloomberg, the former mayor of New York, has denied rumours he plans to stand for election to be London’s next mayor after Boris Johnson steps down.
Speaking at the British embassy in Washington after receiving an honorary knighthood from the Queen, Bloomberg, 73, said he had “zero chance, zero interest” in the position, the New York Times reported.
Bloomberg’s denial puts an end to widespread speculation about his intentions, both in the UK and the US. On Monday, Boris Johnson – whom Bloomberg has in the past referred to as a “kindred spirit” – expressed support for his ally. In a post on Facebook, Johnson joked that the 12-year mayor of New York’s previous position was only training for the real job “You have done the apprenticeship. Now is the time to step up to the plate, and take on the fastest-growing and most dynamic urban economy in Europe,” he said.
Bloomberg is a proud anglophile and a patron of the arts in London. He is building two giant bronze-and-stone towers on the site of the ruins of a Roman temple inLondon to house his company and charity and is the owner of a £12m house in Cadogan Square, Knightsbridge.
But even if Bloomberg had wanted to stand, he would have faced a significant hurdle: he is not a British citizen, a requirement for the job.
At Wednesday’s ceremony, the British ambassador to the US, Sir Peter Westmacott, said the honour was being given in recognition of Bloomberg’s “prodigious entrepreneurial and philanthropic endeavours, and his contribution to UK-US relations”.
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Bloomberg joked with guests – who included US vice-president Joe Biden, Colin Powell, Tina Brown and Harold Evans – that the knighthood did not actually confer every honour on him as an American citizen. “Back in New York, a good friend of mine – this is a friend of long standing – he said to me that this is only a honorary knighthood, and it doesn’t make me either a knight or a commander, nor does it come with a title ‘sir,’” he said, “and I said to him, ‘Well, thank you, Sir Paul McCartney.’”
Bloomberg said the honour was “as good as it gets” and that he had “always admired the sophistication and fortitude of the British people.” 
Asked what he thought about the current pool of US presidential candidates, his response was just as clear. “Hillary and Jeb are the only two who know how to make the trains run,” he said, according to the New York Times report.