The RMT union says 85% of the members polled voted for strike action in the run up to Easter and in April.

Union general secretary Mick Cash has accused Piccadilly line management of a "wholesale abuse of procedures and agreements".

Image source, PA

The Piccadilly line, the fourth busiest on the Underground, has some of the oldest trains on the network and is the focus of a long-running dispute.

Transport for London (TFL) has urged the RMT to "continue talks with us to resolve their issues" rather than threatening strike action.

Several valuable stuffed animals worth about £100,000 are stolen from a taxidermy warehouse in Wandsworth, according to the Met Police. 

The animals, including a chimpanzee in a top hat, two lions and a giraffe, were taken away in a van on Monday evening. 

Image source, Metropolitan Police

Police say they don't think it's a "random crime" as the thieves were "well equipped" to take the stuffed items away. 

Buckingham Palace complains to press watchdog over Sun newspaper article claiming the Queen "backed Brexit".

Image source, PA

The newspaper quotes anonymous sources who claim to have witnessed a "bust-up" between the Queen and the pro-EU former Deputy PM Nick Clegg in 2011.

Buckingham Palace insists the Queen is neutral over the EU referendum. 

Conservative London mayoral candidate Zac Goldsmith has described Labour hopeful Sadiq Khan's manifesto as undeliverable.

In response to published extracts of the document, Mr Goldsmith says: "Khan’s plans don’t survive even the gentlest scrutiny.   

Image source, Getty Images

"With a £1.9 bn black hole at the heart of his programme he can't deliver any of the improvements London needs.

"This isn’t a manifesto, it’s fantasy politics."

Doctor Kitty Mohan tweets...  

Hamish Reid
BBC News Online, South East

Good afternoon. I'll be bringing you updates of all the latest news, sport, travel and weather in London for the rest of the afternoon.

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Abbey Road Studios in London have paid tribute to Sir George Martin, describing him as an "immensely talented, charming and warm man" who transformed music.

Image source, Abbey Road Studios

In a post on their website, external they express their "deepest condolences to the Martin family" following the death of the producer at the age of 90 on Tuesday. 

"We are committed to ensuring Sir George's visionary legacy lives forever at Abbey Road Studios, and we are hugely honoured to be part of his story." 

Labour's mayoral candidate Sadiq Khan has announced a number of measures aimed at protecting private renters as he launched his election manifesto.

The Tooting MP promised to "name and shame" landlords who had been convicted of housing-related offences.

Image source, Getty Images

He claimed an "entire generation" of private tenants had been "failed by the Tories".

Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith said Mr Khan's plans "don't survive even the gentlest scrutiny".

Piccadilly line Tube drivers are to stage three 24-hour strikes in the lead-up to Easter and in April following a "comprehensive breakdown in industrial relations", the RMT announces.

The union says its members will walk out at 21.00 on 23 March and from 12.00 on 19 and 21 April.

Image source, PA

Transport for London (TfL) is urging the RMT not to "subject Londoners to another pointless strike".  

The dispute relates to problems with the fleet of Piccadilly line trains the RMT describe as "ageing".

BBC London Travel
BBC Radio London Travel

Blackwall Tunnel southern approach is blocked northbound at Woolwich Road following a collision. 

Queues have been back past the Sun in the Sands pub.

The number of Londoners on zero-hours contracts rose by 18,000 in a 12-month period, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

About 95,000 people were on that type of contract in late 2015 compared to 77,000 at the same point in 2014.

The data also shows that 2.2% of the capital's workforce is now employed on zero-hour contracts, slightly lower than the national average.

BBC Entertainment and Arts

BBC Entertainment News is dedicating its live page to tributes to record producer Sir George Martin, who has died aged 90.

Image source, PA

Born in north London in 1926, he was known as the "fifth Beatle" for his work with the Fab Four and produced more than 700 records. 

BBC Sport

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger says he's concerned by the injury Aaron Ramsey suffered in the team's 4-0 FA Cup win at Hull.

Image source, Reuters

The midfielder was replaced 16 minutes after coming on as a second half substitute - one of three players who received injuries.

"The most serious looks to be Ramsey," said Wenger. "I think it's a thigh strain."  

Born into a working-class family in 1926 in north London, Sir George Martin's production skills helped define the sound of British popular music.

His greatest success came with the Beatles but he produced more than 700 records, wrote film scores and worked with music's greatest talents during a career that spanned six decades.

Every week nearly a thousand hospital admissions in London are for diseases directly caused by smoking, according to the British Heart Foundation (BHF).

The charity released the figures as part of its No Smoking Day campaign, external.

BHF says there is also a huge difference in the number of smokers per London borough, with one person in five lighting up in Hammersmith and Fulham compared to one in 10 in Richmond upon Thames.

A former Met Police chief has said more should be done to protect the reputation of sexual offence suspects who are investigated but never charged.

Ex-commissioner Lord Blair says lives are "ruined by unproven claims".

The idea was backed by former Army boss Lord Bramall, who was investigated over allegations of a VIP paedophile ring before his case was dropped.

But, rape campaigners said the focus should be "helping survivors, rather than helping alleged perpetrators."

Labour's mayoral candidate, Sadiq Khan, says his "mission is to restore opportunity" and halt "failing social mobility" as he sets out details of his bid for City Hall.

Image source, PA

"London gave me the opportunities to go from the council estate where I grew up, to helping to run a business, serving as transport minister and now running for mayor.

"This manifesto will ensure all Londoners get the opportunities that our city gave to me," he adds.

Find out more about the contenders.

Clark Ainsworth
BBC News

Some of the stories we're looking at this morning in the newsroom include: 

• Hatton Garden heist gang due to be sentenced
• Mayoral hopeful Sadiq Khan launches his social mobility manifesto
• Ex-Met Police chief says more needs to be done to protect sex offence suspects
• 'Fifth Beatle' Sir George Martin dies aged 90