Sadiq Khan’s London feels like a city in decline. Crime is soaring. Communities are hollowed out. Transport is more expensive, less reliable and infinitely less convenient. The city is still a playground for the super rich, but unlivable for the working class. Yet London’s woke, self-righteous mayor has never shown more than a passing interest in these problems.
Laila Cunningham, Reform UK’s candidate for London mayor, says the city needs change. But do she and her party have much hope in Labour’s political heartland? spiked caught up with her at Reform’s London rally. You can watch our video report here.
spiked: London is a Labour stronghold. How is Reform going to win here?
Laila Cunningham: You say that, but we’re polling second in London right now. Labour is on about 30 per cent. It’s gone down by roughly 10 points since the election.
People are seeing what Labour does in government. Its priorities are not the people’s priorities. People are feeling that London doesn’t really work for them. It works for vested interests and politicians, and we want a London that works for Londoners.
spiked: What’s your response to critics who say that you and Reform are talking the city down?
Cunningham: Pointing out the truth is not talking London down. Right now, we are living through a knife-crime epidemic, a rape epidemic, a shoplifting epidemic and a robbery epidemic. The only metric that’s gone down is homicide, and luckily, in London, we don’t have a lot of homicides. But there are many other crimes that affect everyone’s daily life. Even petty shoplifting is corrosive to a community.
Londoners deserve safety because it’s the one thing that you cannot provide privately. That’s the one thing that you really do rely on the state for. That’s why it is its first duty.
spiked: Islamism and anti-Semitism have grown considerably in London – what would you do about these issues?
Cunningham: The number one thing I would do is fly the British flag everywhere, which is what we haven’t seen with Labour councils. That’s why the fight back starts in May’s local elections. It’s why we’ve launched my mayoral bid so early. We have had councils that have prioritised refugees over British people for social housing. The demographics of those areas have changed significantly, as have the culture and the values. The responsibility for this is with local councils. That’s why I tell anyone that if you want to reclaim London as it was – a British city with British values and British traditions – then that change must start in May.
spiked: Is London a divided city?
Cunningham: Yes, I think it is. The political class has tried to divide us. Sadiq Khan and Labour are very quick to put us under different labels. You are gay, you are black, you are white, you grew up in a council estate. I don’t want any of that. I want to be the mayor that unites London.
spiked: What do you say to people on the online right who claim that the fact that you are Muslim, and of Egyptian heritage, makes you unfit to be mayor?
Cunningham: I don’t even listen to them, because Reform is not about that. If you love this country, want to contribute and want the best for it, then you are welcome in our party.
spiked: If you had to describe Sadiq Khan in just a few words, which would you choose?
Cunningham: Arrogant and in it for himself. He’s deprioritised public safety. He’s cut visible policing. He’s halved stop and search. He’s closed down police stations. He’s cut down public counters, even though he promised in his manifesto to keep one in every borough. He’s brought London to a standstill. He knew the ULEZ expansion would hit the poorest the hardest. He didn’t care, because he’s on some kind of personal mission to be an international eco-warrior.
spiked: Why should Londoners take a chance on you, personally?
Cunningham: Because I mean business. I’m not in it for any title. It’s a big deal for me to do this. As you know, since I announced I was running, I’ve received a lot of abuse. But again, it’s the city I love, it’s the country I love. I was a former prosecutor, and I’m a Londoner through and through. Born and bred, and raising my own kids here. I played basketball all across London. And I will do whatever it takes. I’m not bowing down to anyone. I’m not happy with the status quo.
Watch spiked’s video report from Reform UK’s London rally below:
