Mayor of London Sadiq Khan Knighted in New Years honours

S adiq Khan the mayor of London has been honoured with a knighthood in the New Year Honours list.

Khan said he was “truly humbled” to have been made a knight. It’s the honour of my life to serve the city I love”

“I couldn’t have dreamed when growing up on a council estate in south London that I’d one day be Mayor of London. It’s the honour of my life to serve the city I love.”

The appointment of Khan, the first Muslim mayor of London, to the knighthood has sparked some debate.

Conservative councillor Matthew Goodwin-Freeman has initiated a petition opposing Khan’s recognition, having confronted him about it during a public event earlier this month when rumors about the honour surfaced.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp expressed that the honour represents “a reward for failure,” referencing the city’s rising knife crime rates and unmet housing goals.

He said: “Under Sadiq Khan, Londoners have faced a 61 per cent increase in knife crime, a housing crisis and a 70 per cent increase in council tax – they will rightly be furious his track record of failure is being rewarded.”

Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary David Lammy praised Sir Sadiq, celebrating the UK as a country where individuals can rise from humble beginnings—like being the son of a bus driver, as the mayor was—to the esteemed status of knighthood.

He further commented on Khan’s accomplishments, highlighting his policies aimed at improving London’s air quality, increasing the availability of council housing, and providing free meals for students.

Before entering Parliament as the MP for Tooting in 2005, Sir Sadiq worked as a human rights lawyer. He became mayor of London in 2016 and has successfully secured two additional terms since.

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