Former Met deputy assistant commissioner Brian Paddick has been named as the Liberal Democrat candidate for London mayor.
Mr Paddick was selected after winning a ballot of the party's London members.
He said "less crime, better transport, cleaner air and fewer Londoners living in poverty" was crucial for the city.
Mr Paddick, who resigned from the Met earlier this year, beat competition from Chamali Fernando and Fiyaz Mughal for the Lib Dem candidacy.
He won 73% of the first preference votes during the Lib Dem contest and described himself as "firing on all cylinders".
"Ken's a nice guy but he's been in power too long and we need a change"
He stands in next year's contest against Labour's sitting mayor Ken Livingstone and the Conservatives' Boris Johnson.
But he dismissed the idea that he suffered from a lower profile compared to his two main rivals.
"Of course the Lib Dems have a chance," he said. "I think quite a lot of people have heard of Brian Paddick actually and I think I'm the only serious alternative to Ken.
"He's a nice guy and I know him well but he's been in power for too long, he's lost touch and we need a change."
Mr Paddick conceded that Mr Livingstone's tenure had brought some positive change to London but insisted he could improve on the mayor's record.
'Lot of waste'
"There are a number of things that Ken has done reasonably well.
"But putting up the mayoral precept of the council tax by 100% in four years sounds a bit extravagant.
"There's a lot of waste and I think I can do better, so what I'm offering people is 'Ken-plus' if you like - not getting rid of everything Ken has done and starting again."
As a former police officer, he said he was determined to revitalise the relationship between Londoners and police officers and bring about trust and confidence in the police service.
"If you can get all Londoners on the same side as the police working together against crime and disorder, then I think there's going to be a transformation in London and that's what I'm going to be working on."
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