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The Mayor of London Boris Johnson today called for a radical rethink of the role outer London boroughs can play in helping the capital through the current economic downturn.

Speaking ahead of the inaugural meeting of his Outer London Commission the Mayor said outer London areas have the potential to revitalise the capital's economy and boost future growth.

There are currently over 160,000 businesses in outer London employing more than 1.6m people. The Mayor's Outer London Commission, chaired by William McKee, will advise the Mayor on changes to the London Plan in respect to outer boroughs as well as looking at how to take forward the work outlined in the Mayor's Economic Recovery Action Plan.

Boris Johnson said: "We are facing challenging economic times so it is imperative that we do everything we can to strengthen and diversify the capital's economy. I believe that investing in outer boroughs to un-tap their economic potential will not only revitalise London's economy today but strengthen and diversify it for future generations.

"Over 1.6m people already work in some 160,000 business in outer London boroughs. I want to expand that number by encouraging new businesses and nurturing those that already exist in the area. I will ensure that outer London benefits from the newly refocused LDA programmes to advise and invest in small businesses. And will ensure outer London boroughs benefit from the £600m skills training programme I'm overseeing as chair of the London Skills and Employment Board.

"The GLA spends billions of pounds every year in London. That's why we're making it easier for small and medium enterprises to win contracts with us and why are cutting the length of time we take to pay our invoices from 30 to 10 days, something I'm encouraging all businesses to do."

William McKee, Chair of the Outer London Commission, said: "The Mayor has rightly placed realising the economic potential of outer London at the heart of the Commission's work. In support of this, we will be examining, also, other key planning considerations including transport infrastructure and factors affecting the quality of life in outer London."

The Commission will hold four meetings in outer London areas in the next four months before submitting their preliminary report to the Mayor in June ahead of the review of the London Plan.

The Outer London Commission have defined Barking and Dagenham, Barnet, Bexley, Brent, Bromley, Croydon, Ealing, Enfield, Haringey, Harrow, Havering, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Kingston, Merton, Newham, Redbridge, Richmond, Sutton and Waltham Forest as outer London Boroughs.