CAPITALISM MORE LETHAL THAN HITLER, SAYS LIVINGSTONE

Ken Livingstone claimed yesterday that global capitalism kills more people
each year than were killed by Adolf Hitler

The front-runner to become London mayor said that the World Bank and the
International Monetary Fund were responsible for millions of deaths
annually by failing to ease the Third World debt burden.

Mr Livingstone's comments, days before he is to launch a charm offensive on
the City of London, came in an interview with New Musical Express in which
he also called for the legalisation of cannabis and Ecstasy.

"Each year the international financial system kills more people than World
War Two. But at least Hitler was mad, you know?"

Steven Norris, Mr Livingstone's Tory mayoral rival, seized on his comments,
saying: "Ken Livingstone is a left-wing extremist. The mask always slips.
London can ill afford the kind of danger to which Ken Livingstone is quite
prepared to subject it. Londoners want safe streets and a safe transport
system and not anarchy in the UK."

Mr Livingstone's provocative comments strike a very different note from the
manifesto commitment that he plans to make this week to "work with the City
corporations and major City institutions to ensure London remains the
financial centre of Europe".

Mr Livingstone planned to buttress his manifesto pledge with an appearance
at an awards ceremony on May 2 for bankers and lawyers involved in European
acquisitions and mergers.

The Independent candidate's comments to NME will reawaken doubts about his
intentions towards finance. Earlier this year Mr Livingstone caused offence
among City workers by appearing to support anarchist rioters who caused
millions of pounds of damage last summer.

Mr Livingstone was responding to a question from a reader who asked: "Do
you still believe that the bosses of the International Monetary Fund should
'die painfully in their beds?'"

He replied: "The IMF and the World Bank are still appalling and now the
World Trade Organisation too. All over the world, people die unnecessarily
because of the international financial system.

"Susan George, the economist not the actress, estimates that in any year
since 1981 between 15 and 20 million people have died unnecessarily from
the debt burden because Third World governments have to cut back on clean
water and health programmes."

Mr Livingstone also told NME that drugs should be freely prescribed by GPs
and accused Keith Hellawell, the Government's "drug czar", of exaggerating
the dangers of Ecstasy and cannabis.

His interview appeared designed to boost his youth vote. Responding to
readers' questions he talks of his collaboration with the pop group Blur
and suggests that Tony Blair call his imminent baby Ken.

Asked if cannabis should be legalised, Mr Livingstone said: "Drugs are not
all the same. Ecstasy is clearly not addictive, cannabis is clearly less
damaging than booze... We could consider decriminalising things like
Ecstasy and cannabis. The people who would be most disappointed if ever the
drugs czar was sacked would be the cocaine cartels."