The Mayor of London kicked off his whistlestop tour of the world’s third largest economy by stunning locals when he danced in the aisles of a swanky department store.
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Toyota said that London was a key city for early adoption of the new vehicles due to Mayor Boris Johnson’s commitment to developing the necessary infrastructure while encouraging motorists to move to more environmentally-friendly auto technology.
The memorandum of understanding between London and Tokyo will see the two cities also work together on transport, tourism and the environment.
Tokyo’s scandal-tinged Olympic stadium will be completed in time for the 2020 games, the city’s governor said yesterday, as London Mayor Boris Johnson warned of the pitfalls of “playing politics” when hosting the competition.
In recent years London has become a world beater in hosting major global sports events.
The Conservative MP also mixed with Japan’s fashion pack when he helped to launch a flagship store of Burberry, one of Britain’s biggest clothing brands, in Tokyo.
With a population of more than 13 million, Tokyo is the largest metropolitan economy in the world.
Mr Johnson, who will also be accompanied by academics from the MedCity biosciences organisation, will seek to raise the profile of London’s expertise in the sector in a speech at BioJapan, the largest biotechnology event in Asia, during a visit to Yokohama.
London’s unique position as a world class financial centre and home to a few of the world’s top universities and medical institutions is creating the flawless location to translate the most cutting-edge science into real life benefits for patients, where the number of new jobs in life sciences has tripled in the past year.
Managing director for Toyota Paul Van der Burgh said: “We have been delighted to welcome the Mayor of London to our headquarters in Japan to see for himself Toyota’s commitment to sustainable mobility”.
Major of London Boris Johnson has announced that Transport for London will be the first United Kingdom customer for the new Toyota Mirai fuel cell electric vehicle.
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He will be joined on the trip by London tech ambassador’s Eileen Burbidge MBE, HM Treasury FinTech Envoy and Derek White, Chief Innovation Officer, Barclays, to share London’s expertise and highlight the opportunities for technology innovation in Japan.
