London Latest - British PM Desperate to Rebuild U.K.'s Image Before Olympics

(ATR) Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron told MPs today he was keen to quickly restore Britain's reputation internationally a year from the 2012 Olympics after four nights of rioting across England.

His comments came as Games organizers told Around the Rings that this weekend's 2012 test events - a marathon swim at Hyde Park and the Surrey Cycle Classic, a road cycling rehearsal, would be going ahead despite Tottenham's Premier League game with Everton being called off.

Addressing an emergency session of parliament, Cameron said: "We need to show the world, which has looked on frankly appalled, that the perpetrators of the violence we have seen on our streets are not in any way representative of our country – nor of our young people.

"And a year away from the Olympics, we need to show them the Britain that doesn’t destroy, but that builds; that doesn’t give up but stands up; that doesn’t look back, but always forwards."

He was speaking after a relatively quiet night in London and in other major English cities. The Olympic city, Manchester, Nottingham and Bristol are among the cities hit by waves of violence and looting since Saturday when the rioting started in Tottenham, north London, following the shooting of a man by police.

Courts in the cities affected have been sitting through the night to process the more than 1,300 arrests made since the weekend.

Cameron announced measures to deter further rioting and promised to come down hard on those involved in the worst violence on Britain's streets in decades. "The fight back has well and truly begun. And we will not stop until this mindless violence and thuggery is defeated and law and order is fully restored on all our streets," he told MPs.

"To the lawless minority, the criminals who've taken what they can get. I say this: We will track you down, we will find you, we will charge you, we will punish you. You will pay for what you have done."

Admitting there were "far too few police" on England's streets, the prime minister pledged to maintain the 16,000-strong police presence on London's streets through the weekend.

Among measures to restore order, Cameron pledged to review curfews and introduced new police powers allowing them to order people to remove facemasks where criminality was suspected.Courts may be given tougher sentencing powers.

Compensation was promised for businesses and homeowners whose properties were damaged or looted in the riots.

Mayor Launches Fund to Repair Riot-hit Areas

Boris Johnson today announced a £50 million fund major long-term improvements to the capital’s town centres and high streets damaged by the London riots. The Olympic borough of Hackney experienced some of the worst violence.

The cash injection is in addition to the mayor's Outer London Fund, designed to grow economic activity and drive employment in parts of London benefiting less directly from infrastructure improvements like Crossrail and the 2012 Olympics.

Johnson, who has struggled to appease angry people affected by the mindless rioting in recent days, has earmarked the new regeneration fund for larger scale proposals to build on the momentum created as repair and rebuilding work begins.

"We have always recognised the importance of improving London's town centres and clearly after the destruction caused by the recent events across the city this is a bigger challenge than ever," he said.

"That is why I am allocating £50 million to ensure that these areas are regenerated quickly and transformed into safe, attractive, vibrant and economically successful places to live, work and invest in."

Johnson has voiced concerns about the government's plans to impose cuts of 20% on the police.

But at the emergency sitting of parliament today, the British prime minister dismissed additional calls from the Labour party for that four-year plan to be re-examined.

LOCOG Test Events on Schedule

A London 2012 spokeswoman confirmed to ATR that the busy week of Olympic test events would continue unaffected by the riots. Badminton and beach volleyball test events are already underway and conclude on Sunday.

She said the marathon swim in Hyde Park on Saturday and Surrey Cycle Classic on Sunday remain on schedule.

"It's business as usual as far as it stands at this point in time," she said.

Next week, London hosts basketball and BMX track test events.

ODA Media Chief Quits for Supermarket Chain

Tesco, Britain's largest supermarket chain, has appointed Olympic Delivery Authority media chief Tom Curry to the newly created role of U.K. communications director, according to PR Week.

With the ODA's big build coming in on budget and on schedule in the next few months, the Olympic body is winding down its work. The Olympic Park is now mostly complete, with the aquatics center the sixth and final venue to be finished. It opened to coincide with the July 27 year-to-go milestone.

Reported by Mark Bisson