So often the idea of work for older people is buried away in a corner of social policies rather than being central to economic strategy. Questions, especially posed in public, can give pause for thought. Conversations on economic development should not take place without the position of older workers being considered.

So today to the grandeur of the Royal Opera House where the London Development Agency is presenting its proposals for an economic development strategy for Greater London. There are points to make about how seriously it examines the demographics of London’s citizens and how relevant it will be to the huge number of older unemployed in the capital.

London Mayor, Boris Johnson, gives full flight to his comic skills honed on Have I Got News for You? He crows about getting Peter Mandelson and George Osborne to sit in the same room without the use of a yacht! Mandy appreciates the joke and joshes that he has just accepted the challenge of a cycle race across the city with Boris, only as it will be several months away, Boris has ample time to get fit! Merriment all round.

I formulate my question for the Q and A session accordingly. “While congratulating Boris and Lord Mandelson on their forthcoming duel, can I assume they will be assembling teams of supporting riders as in the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France? And will their teams celebrate the diversity of London’s people they have just been speaking of so warmly? As a veteran of the 2007 Tour’s London to Canterbury Grand Depart, may I offer my services as domestique, thereby ticking the “older person’s” box in someone’s team?

Get ready for the laughter…. Only squeezed out by the man with an interesting question about cement lorries, I don’t get a word in. It is a moot point however how either may have answered. There is the Mayor’s strategy with lots about promoting equality and tackling deprivation, but scarcely a nod in the direction of tackling the problems of older people seeking work in the capital.

Older people make up a sizeable proportion of those who would work if they had the chance. But the capital’s labour market seems more youth centred than elsewhere, so the case calls out for action. A strategy to promote economic activity among older people is surely crucial in all regions. It comes as a shock to learn that around 30 per cent of Londoners are not in work, compared with 25 per cent for the whole of the UK. London generates jobs at a faster rate than the rest of the country but it also harbours the most intractable problems of worklessness.

On a lighter note, real opportunities are there for older people who would like to work in organising the Olympic Games – I kid you not. The London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) is aiming for greater age diversity among its staff and wants to achieve this in an exemplary way. That’s why they have been talking to TAEN of course. LOCOG wish to make it known that they encourage older people to apply for their jobs. See their website for more information http://locogrecruitment.london2012.com/jobs/main

Roles will include carrying out the million and one tasks needed to pull the Olympics together. No guarantees, but the fringe benefits might just include the chance to try out the facilities, including perhaps the velodrome. Don’t be surprised if you find you know who putting in a few training laps. It could be a nice opportunity for an unemployed veteran sprint cyclist, to make a point!