The message coming out of Ken Livingstone's campaign launch is that the London elections matter. Not just for those wanting to protect multiculturalism or reduce carbon emissions, but for the future of the civilised world.

Trade unionists, activists and assembly members joined journalists and photographers in a crowded Royal Festival Hall function room as the mayor set out how he would keep London "moving forward".

In fact, "forward" was very much the buzzword of the launch. Ken spoke of how he had used his "forward looking vision" to develop "forward looking policies" which would take "London forward". There was also talk of "the path that continues to move forward" and a bid to "carry these policies forward" in a third term.

While guests at the Back Boris launch enjoyed music from The Kinks, The Clash and Curtis Mayfield, Ken was introduced by Doreen Lawrence, the mother of murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence. The election is not, as the mayor said, an episode of Celebrity Big Brother.

More cynical commentators might claim that Doreen Lawrence was used as a publicity stunt, or question the origin of her statement that Johnson would not "have had such commitment" to the centre set up in her son's name.

But she was undoubtedly a clever choice. Given her experiences with racism and the police, her warning that London's "culture of openness, tolerance and mutual respect is one of the most important things at stake in this mayoral election" holds extra force.

One noticeable aspect of Ken's address were his references to London and Londoners. His jokes go down well. He uses his experiences as a "Londoner born and bred and by choice" to his advantage, dropping in anecdotes about living north and south of the river.

The most popular jibe however is when he quotes Samuel Johnson as saying: "'When a man is tired of London he slopes off to Henley'."

"For me London is not just a place, it's an idea and it's an amazing experiment of people working together," gushes the mayor.

There is also a wave of disbelief when Ken quotes Boris Johnson's comments that pedestrians "are the most dangerous thing on the roads". However, his statement that "if a pedestrian or a cyclist is hit by a car travelling at 20mph they are 19 times out of 20 likely to survive, if they are hit by a car travelling at 40mph only 10 per cent of them survive" is strangely reminiscent of this government road safety campaign.

Other topics up for discussion are Porsche's legal bid to prevent a £25 congestion charge for high-emitting vehicles, and progress with racial relations and civil partnerships.

Indeed, the mayor knows what sets him apart from his Tory candidate. And as assembly members climb onto the stage to pose for photos, along with Lawrence, Ken chirps that his party's "range of candidates actually looks like London".

Never one to underestimate the scale of the challenge, he ends his speech by saying: "I do believe that the best for London is yet to come and the best for the world is yet to come. If we can get it right in our great cities, humanity has a future."