The Mayor of London paid a visit to Whitton and Kew this week where he met traders and an awaiting public.

Boris Johnson, who toured Whitton High Street before moving on to Kew Parade, spoke to business owners and had photos taken with schoolchildren.

Whitton received outer London funding in 2012 and is currently undergoing refurbishment with a £1.7m investment.

Mr Johnson said: “In 2015 the Rugby World Cup is coming here and this is going to be the epicentre of the world – this is where it is going to be.

“Whitton is fantastic and a great example of how outer London fund money has been used.”

Dr Tania Mathias, the Conservative parliamentary candidate for Twickenham, said: “It is a great pleasure to have the Mayor of London visiting this part of the constituency.

“Whitton has one of the best high streets in the borough: it has local high quality shops that make it a true destination shopping area.”

He was handed bike-shaped pasta from Action Bikes and given free coffee before he got the train to Kew, where MP Zac Goldsmith was waiting for him.

In Kew he was met with campaigners opposed to Brentford Football Club’s stadium move to Lionel Road South, near Kew Bridge, which the Mayor recently gave the thumbs up to.

Martin Taylor, of the Kew Society, said: “There are traffic and pollution issues which are still not being addressed by anybody.”

Mr Johnson, who gave the project the green light earlier in February, said: “We need more great sports facilities in London and we will sort out the traffic to make sure it works.”

Liberal Democrat Councillor Jean-Francois Burford, who represents the Kew ward, said: “I recommend that, during his fleeting photo opportunity visit, Boris take some time to complete our Too Much Traffic survey because he is responsible for a great many of the problems that our area is facing in this regard.

“He approved the new Brentford development at Kew Bridge with no thought to impact on traffic in our borough and in particular Kew.”

During the visit, the Mayor said his number one priority was to boost economic growth in London.

He said: “We want to get people into work and to a great extent we have already done that.

“Moving forwards we need to build more affordable housing in London.”