London still loves Boris (jealous, Dave?)

The Evening Standard reports that London's Mayor - Conservative Boris Johnson - is still enjoying popularity in London... in fact, he's more loved here than ever.

The newspaper reports on the findings of it's survey - conducted by ComRes in conjunction with ITV news show London Tonight and radio broadcaster LBC - and states: "Boris Johnson's hopes of a second term as Mayor were boosted today by a poll showing he is more popular than both of his Labour rivals put together."

The poll has Boris on 45%; Ken Livingstone on 27% and Oona King on 9%.

While doing very well in the slightly (!) leafier suburbs, Boris is even ahead in Inner London - 33% to Ken's 32%.

So, what does this tell us?

Well, it will be food for thought for David Cameron, for one.

In Inner London, the Conservatives failed to make a breakthrough at the General Election.

An area with a very high number of people from immigrant communities (which once led the BNP's Nick Griffin to describe London as having been "ethnically cleansed"), it was these Inner London seats that most stubbornly again returned Labour MPs and contributed to the Coalition forced upon the Conservatives.

So then, what to make of the enduring popularity of Boris Johnson in these areas and throughout London - at the expense of Ken Livingstone?

After all, Ken Livingstone's own popularity was such that he famously thrashed the official Labour candidate to win the job of London Mayor when he stood as an independent.

And he's nowhere near rivalling the popularity of Boris Johnson.

It is something for the Conservative Party HQ to have to process - and will be a personal source of discomfort to the Prime Minister.

After all, here is Boris Johnson, happily proving himself to be highly popular; a winner where David Cameron could only be a loser.