London is a mess, but Mayor Sadiq Khan doesn’t seem to think so. The mayor outright ignores the rise of burglaries, robberies, and homicides — proclaiming that London hasn’t become more dangerous since he took office.
A Disturbing Rise in Crime
Since Mayor Sadiq Khan took office in 2016, Burglaries are up 37 percent, robberies are up by close to 60 percent, and homicides are up by 24 percent. Knife crimes have become rampant in London, with almost 15,000 reported stabbings. The number of fatal stabbings has reached record highs, as does the number of stabbing incidents involving children. Twenty percent of stabbing victims are below the age of 16, most likely stabbed by someone their own age. Acid attacks have doubled since 2016, with almost 500 incidents per year, some of which were targeted at police officers.
Embracing Identity Politics
Identity politics has found a home in London to the detriment of everything else. Former mayor Boris Johnson critiqued Khan over the way he ran the city, especially over the Metro. Johnson said police officers should have the confidence that they can approach a suspect — even a teenager — and be able to search for a knife and confiscate that knife without being called out for being a bigot or racist. Mayor Khan is often critiqued for pushing identity politics and social justice to extremes, even ordering the Metropolitan Police Gangs Database to be overhauled citing it had racially disproportionate representations. Criminal elements and gangs have renewed confidence, knowing that police are wary of any allegations of inappropriate behavior. London police are also policing speech and internet use instead of solely focusing on the streets. If you don’t agree with the mayor’s stand on some issues, get ready to call your trusted solicitor firms in London because you might get charged for hate speech.
Criticism from All Sides
Mayor Sadiq Khan is facing significant criticism from his constituents, the police, political parties, and even U.S. President Trump. Ever the virtue-signaller, Mayor Khan made a video critical to the U.S. president during his visit to the UK. President Trump responded by calling the London mayor a failure and that he should focus on crime. Incidents like this give an insight into the mayor’s priorities; social justice is more important than actual justice, and your race can determine whether or not you get charged with a crime. The mayor is often criticized for the rash of crimes in London. But instead of accepting responsibility, he blames the central government, music, white middle classes, and boredom. Instead of addressing the proliferation of gangs that increase the incidents of knife crimes, the mayor will ban knives. When a Muslim extremist used a car to mow down pedestrians, instead of tightening intelligence on Muslim extremism, the mayor bans cars.
When politics is more important than running the city, we see London under Sadiq Khan. Identity politics is at the forefront of every policy, preventing police from doing their jobs and turning ordinary citizens into criminals for sharing a joke.