Sadiq Khan accused of ‘decade of failure’ in City Hall

‘It is deeply regretful then that the tenure of Sir Sadiq Khan as Mayor of London will be nothing more than a monument to failure: a forgotten, lost decade where opportunities to shape the future of our city forever were squandered.’

The Mayor of London has been accused of overseeing a “decade of failure” in office, with critics saying a lack of ambition will see him unable to leave behind a legacy.

The City Hall Conservatives have claimed Sir Sadiq Khan has broken promises on housing, Tube strikes and police front counters – and that there is no major tenet of London life that is better now than in 2016.

In a new report, entitled ‘Cost of Khan’, the party said the last 10 years in the capital have been defined by broken promises, short-term decisions and desperate but unsuccessful attempts to build a legacy.

Susan Hall, who leads the City Hall Conservatives, said: “We all go into politics to make our area better: to represent our neighbours, to speak up for our communities, and to build societies which provide a strong social inheritance for our families.

“It is deeply regretful then that the tenure of Sir Sadiq Khan as Mayor of London will be nothing more than a monument to failure: a forgotten, lost decade where opportunities to shape the future of our city forever were squandered.

“By all metrics, it is a decade of failure. Crime is up, positive outcomes are down, our economy is in shambles, and investment and delivery of infrastructure are left wanting. And all this is because he chose to focus on himself, rather than our city.

“Well, when the obituaries on this sorry episode of civic leadership are written, let the epitaph read ‘Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.’ Anything else will have been window dressing for a useless Mayor.”

To mark 10 years in charge, the report, released today, (Wednesday May 20) highlights what they call Sir Sadiq’s “10 biggest failings” in office.

These claims include 156 Tube strikes despite pledging “zero days of public transport strikes” prior to the 2016 Mayoral election, and an alleged failure to leave a “transport legacy” – noting that both the Elizabeth line and Night Tube were projects initiated under previous Mayors.

Housing is also a major issue cited, especially the failure to hit government targets on building new affordable homes in the capital.

Another issue raised – one that has united opposition parties on the London Assembly – is police station front counter closures across the city. In 2024 the Mayor pledged to maintain a 24-hour front counter in every borough, but Met Police cuts meant that many either had reduced hours or were shut entirely.

Other claims made in the report include accusing Sir Sadiq of failing to stand up to his party colleagues in the Labour government, overseeing a “faltering” night-time economy and almost doubling the Mayoral Precept – the portion of Council Tax levied by the Mayor of London to help fund the GLA’s Budget.

The report concludes: “After 10 years as Mayor, Sadiq Khan’s legacy is one of wasteful, misallocated spending, broken promises, higher crime, worse roads, an unreformed TfL and a failure to build the homes London and Londoners need.

“Sadiq Khan clearly hoped that a Labour Government would have a transformative impact on his Mayoralty. That has not happened and a Mayor who spent eight years blaming the Government for his failings now has no one to blame but himself.

“With just under two years to the end of his Mayoral term there is not much time to change course and create a better legacy and he has now discovered he cannot rely on the Government to help him.”

A spokesperson for the Mayor told the LDRS: “The Mayor is hugely proud of what has been achieved over the last 10 years.

“From delivering free school meals to all state primary school children to cleaning up London’s toxic air almost 200 years ahead of predictions, investing record sums in the policing and tackling the causes of crime, and introducing the Hopper bus fare, he has been committed to improve the lives of Londoners.

“These are life-changing initiatives and accomplishments that have been delivered despite the previous Government’s disastrous legacy of austerity, and the Mayor continues to work hard to build a fairer, safer and more prosperous London for everyone.”

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