So who pays for clogging up London when roads and public areas are closed to the public to allow sponsoring companies to promote themselves by putting their names to events held there? Who pays for all the lost business due to missed appointments? Who compensates for all the cancelled journeys? Who compensates rate-paying Londoners who can’t access parks and squares in their own city because of transport problems and closures? And who would be responsible for tragedy when ambulances can’t get through to hospitals?

Certainly not the sponsors, nor the organisers making money from the events, nor the participants enjoying them, which comes across as selfish.

This point was well made by columnist Simon Jenkins, writing this month in the London Evening Standard, pointing out the damaging chaos caused by a two-day July weekend cycling event sponsored by the Prudential Insurance company. This closed eight miles of roads in Central London and hundreds more outside, including the A4/M4 all the way to Heathrow Airport, making most journeys impossible.

Question is how can anyone inconvenienced by the increase in selfish publicity stunts that damage London stop the rot.? They probably can’t, and must just wait until companies like Prudential Insurance find that having their name linked to damaging chaos is counter-productive.

Let’s hope, for the sake of London and those working in it, living in it or visiting, it won’t be too long.