Sadiq Khan can't answer these questions...
Whilst the session may be called Mayor’s Question Time, answers seem to be quite lacking.
Christmas is almost here and we’ve been busy at City Hall this week scrutinising the Mayor face-to-face for the last time this year. However, the Mayor didn’t seem able to provide many concrete answers as he ducked and dived to avoid difficult questions posed by our Members. We asked him what his new year’s resolutions were - hopefully, one of them will be to start giving straight answers.
NINE TIMES WE ASKED, NINE TIMES HE REFUSED TO ANSWER
We heard a lot last week about how the £450m shortfall in Met police funding might lead to more than 2,300 officers and 400 support staff being cut. This week, Lord Bailey AM asked the mayor whether he had asked the government for money to make up for this shortfall. He asked nine times, in fact.
Every time, Khan failed to answer the question and just dodged it by telling us to wait until next summer. Not helpful if the police are already gone by then…
WILL HE WASPI?
Sadiq Khan was previously photographed supporting the WASPI campaign and encouraging its members to “keep up the good fight.” As the Labour Government rules out compensation for those affected, Emma Best AM took Khan to task over his comments and asked whether he still supported WASPI women. All he could do was talk about how the Government has gaps in its finances.
KHAN’S “CROCODILE TEARS” COMMENT - SUSAN HALL WON’T STAND IT
Despite not answering questions, the Mayor was very happy to get petulant. Accusing the Conservative Assembly Members of “crocodile tears” over their concerns about the rampant out-of-control crime rates in London, Susan Hall gave him both barrels. Speaking passionately about crime, she was quick to remind him how rampant these offences have become under his tenure. Watch the full exchange below:
ALESSANDRO GEORGIOU ASKS THE MAYOR - WHEN WILL YOU LOBBY FOR LONDON?
Will the Mayor admit that this Government’s decisions are just a punishment on Londoners? Alessandro Georgiou was straight in to ask the Mayor how many more groups in society such as pensioners, farmers, and the parents of school children must be thrown under the bus for Labour.
It was a manifesto promise of the Mayor’s to stand up for Londoners - and nine years later, we’ve seen almost no evidence of this ever happening, so Alessandro decided to ask if the Mayor would make it his New Year’s resolution.