Khan ‘has no intention to run for Labour leader if Starmer resigns’

LONDON mayor Sadiq Khan has denied having any ambitions to lead the Labour Party if Sir Keir Starmer steps down.

During an interview with the BBC’s Sunday Morning programme (5), Khan responded to a question of whether he’d run for Labour leader if Starmer resigns. “No. But it is a good compare and contrast about the integrity of Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner versus Johnson and Sunak,”

said Khan, referring to the Labour deputy leader, prime minister and the chancellor.

Khan claimed Boris Johnson “presided over a culture of lawbreaking” and said Sir Keir’s decision to quit if fined showed “integrity.” The prime minister and chancellor Rishi Sunak offered an apology upon receiving their fixed-penalty notices.

Opposition leader Sir Keir has promised to quit if he receives a fixed-penalty notice following the Durham Constabulary’s probe into so-called ‘beergate’.

“I’ve put everything on the line,” said Sir Keir. Deputy leader Angela Rayner has also promised to quit if she receives a fine. Last month, Khan drew criticism from the Labour shadow cabinet following the announcement he was establishing a commission to examine the UK’s cannabis laws.

Members of the government have also raised concerns about the plans and have accused the mayor of ignoring crime in London. “Sadiq Khan’s time would be better spent focusing on knife and drug crime in London,” said home secretary Priti Patel.

Since Khan became mayor in 2016, recorded crime per person in London has increased by 18 per cent according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). “I profoundly wish he would focus on knife crime and violence taking place in the capital,” said policing minister Kit Malthouse.

Khan said the Met had to work harder on restoring public trust. “One of the reasons why I lost confidence in the previous comissioner was my lack of confidence in her plan to address the two big issues,” he said.

Dame Cressida Dick resigned following scandals including Sarah Everard’s murder and her handling of racist and homophobic messages shared by Charing Cross police officers. The new commissioner would be checked on plans for addressing “systemic racism, sexism, homophobia and misogyny,” said Khan, as well as how they’d rebuild public trust.