Londoners are living through a real-time horror story where criminals act with impunity, the police are powerless and taxpayers foot the bill. The responsibility lies with Sadiq Khan – tomorrow, don’t vote for a sequel, urges Oni Oviri
London Has Fallen. But instead of a popular action thriller we are watching a real time political horror story unfold.
The main protagonist is Sadiq Khan, the Labour London Mayor who, after two terms, has overseen the transformation of the capital into a crime-ridden cesspit. Or at least it feels that way for those of us who live and work here.
Just yesterday a 14-year-old boy died and a man with a sword was arrested in east London amid reports of a car being driven into a building. Earlier this month clouds of cannabis smoke rose above Hyde Park as activists at an unauthorised ‘420 rally’ brazenly smoked the drug in front of police officers, yet only six arrests were made.
In 2022 almost 91,000 phones were stolen from Londoners – often swiped by balaclava-clad motorbike gangs – and only two per cent were recovered.
You would think as a result of this daylight disorder, that there would be word from the Mayor’s office on tackling the crime. But it is not even his top priority. Instead, the centrepiece of his manifesto is free school meals for primary schools, a policy that already exists for one in five children.
Gone are the days of Labour’s rhetoric about being tough on crime and the causes of crime. Thirty years ago when Tony Blair made this pledge, arguing that a “hard headed approach to law and order was required, through strategy that dealt with the underlying causes of crime as well as those that are committing crimes, was necessary to get a real grip on the problem”, there was an element of hope that Labour knew what they were doing.
But not today. The Labour debate on crime instead goes round and round in circles. Disorder reigns supreme, the police are overwhelmed and confidence in them is at an all-time low. A recent YouGov survey found that only 37 per cent of voters believe police forces are doing a good job, with most thinking they are doing worse than 30 years ago.
And while the official data paints a patchy picture, certain very visible types of crime that make people feel less safe – like shoplifting and crime on the tube – have undeniably risen under Khan.
Knife crime, in particular, dominates headlines. Incidents like the murder of 15-year-old Elianne Andam in broad daylight on her way to school in Croydon strike fear into the hearts of Londoners and perversely encourage young people to carry knives for protection.
Knife crime has risen every year in the capital since the pandemic and one in four Londoners report they have been attacked or threatened with violence in the last five years. The Centre for Social Justice has estimated the costs of this epidemic at £7bn in 2023 and it’s the poorest communities that are worst affected.
With Sadiq Khan at the helm, criminals have been able to act with impunity, brashly filming their acts on social media as though they are starring in a Hollywood blockbuster. For Londoners to vote him in for a third term tomorrow would be like allowing a film director to milk a franchise that has already run its course – but with far more severe consequences. London Has Fallen part three can only be worse than what’s gone before.
Oni Oviri is a procurement, supply chain and logistics expert and former Conservative councillor