Being organised is the key to a good election campaign, according to wannabe Mayor of London MP Zac Goldsmith, despite re-scheduling our interview numerous times due to childcare issues.

Wandsworth Times:

Zac Goldsmith, fourth from right, visited businesses in Wimbledon last week

Mr Goldsmith, MP for Richmond Park and North Kingston, is a father to Thyra, James and Uma with first wife Sheherazade Goldsmith and has a young child with wife Alice Rothschild, whom he married in 2013.

A telephone interview scheduled for 11.15am had to be re-arranged a number of times while the Conservative candidate juggled his responsibilities that morning, but he insisted he was not struggling to manage work and family life.

October: Tory mayoral hopeful Zac Goldsmith talks Jeremy Corbyn, tax credit cuts and Heathrow expansion

He said: “Being in politics is a 24 hour job. You are always on call. You become an expert in managing your time for different parts of your life.

“It is very intense this campaign and it will be until the election. It requires me to be very organised.

“We don’t have the unions or Momentum – my priority was to recruit people. People are committed to helping.”

September: "A local boy done good" - Sadiq Khan MP overwhelmed by support after winning Labour mayoral candidate election

He got out into Wimbledon town centre last week to speak to businesspeople about their concerns over the impact of Crossrail 2, Merton rubbish collection, Wimbledon shop occupancy and the availability of free parking in Wimbledon.

October: Parts of Wimbledon town centre including Centre Court Shopping Centre could be demolished to make way for Crossrail 2

He said he strongly supports the Crossrail 2 project, set to decimate Wimbledon town centre as building work slices through Centre Court shopping centre and dozens of other town centre businesses, but said Transport for London (TfL) should look again at what it means for the town.

He said: “The conundrum is Crossrail 2 is not just a transport project, it is a regeneration project. It is not just about people moving around. If the regeneration project damages businesses it defeats the object.

“I think it could do serious damage [to Wimbledon]. TfL really need to get this right.”

The development, set to take several years, would effectively close Wimbledon for business and has been opposed by the Merton Chamber of Commerce, among other groups, over concerns about the impact on the area.

He said: “I strongly support Crossrail 2, I will do everything I can to make sure it happens.

“It’s non-negotiable for London.

“I think TfL needs to look again at what it means for Wimbledon and Wimbledon businesses.”

He added: “It will be undermined by the damage to the area.”

He said he was working closely with Wimbledon MP Stephen Hammond, who is developing an alternative plan.

“I am very strongly inclined to back him.

“This is not a short term measure, it is infrastructure for the future,” Mr Goldsmith added.

Transport will be a major issue in the up-coming mayoral election next May.

Over-crowding and delays on trains cause misery for commuters on a daily basis. So what would Zac Goldsmith do to help people paying out for these services?

“In terms of the cost of travel, I have been resisting pressure to freeze fares. It is not possible. It is a promise you can easily break. I am determined not to break my promises.

“The only way we can do that is by cancelling essential upgrade work. We have to look at opportunities to make the system fairer. Re-zoning it makes it fairer.

“There are a lot of other options – I am working out the details.”

Campaigns to bring Epsom into Zone 6 and Croydon into Zone 4 have been launched by sister newspapers the Epsom Guardian and the Croydon Guardian recently.

Read about the Epsom Guardian Zone 6 campaign here

Read about the Croydon Guardian Zone 4 campaign here

He said: “We have a similar issue in Kingston – it is in the wrong zone. I have been making the case for a long time. I think there needs to be consistency.

“Croydon falls into the same argument.”

The London mayoral election will take place on May 5, 2016.