Johnson enters London mayoral race

Henley's maverick MP, Boris Johnson, has declared he will stand as a candidate for mayor of London.

In a newspaper he said the opportunity of leading the nation's capital was "too wonderful to miss".

Mr Johnson made his decision just hours ahead of the noon deadline for candidates to declare their intention to stand for the Conservative nomination.

He is now expected to be the most prominent runner in a small field of candidates hoping to seize the Tory nomination to take on Labour's sitting mayor Ken Livingstone in next year's election.

Mr Johnson told a London newspaper: "The opportunity is too great, and the prize too wonderful to miss; and that prize is the chance to represent London and to speak for Londoners."

Mr Johnson's decision, following weeks of agonising, comes as a boost to Tory leader David Cameron.

Mr Cameron had been struggling to find a high-profile candidate to take on Mr Livingstone, having failed to persuade figures including Greg Dyke, Sir John Major and Sir Digby Jones to throw their hats into the ring.

Although he has a reputation for gaffes and a complicated personal life, Mr Johnson is one of the Conservatives' most popular and best-known faces, thanks in part to his appearances on TV shows such as Have I Got News For You.

He told the paper: "The mystery is not why someone would want to be mayor of London. The mystery is why someone would not want to do the job and to try to make this city greater still.

"A city as great as this deserves a great debate and a proper contest for its future."

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