He’s won the popularity contest – now London’s new mayor Sadiq Khan must make some unpopular decisions
Let's be honest, the world of politics has witnessed better campaigns than the scrap between Zac Goldsmith and Sadiq Khan that culminated in the latter storming into City Hall with over 300,000 more votes than his nearest rival.
Goldsmith has been roundly condemned for his team’s negative focus, while the broader contest was strangely subdued, played out in the shadow of the upcoming – and far more significant – referendum on Britain’s membership of the EU.
But while the City keeps an extremely close eye on events leading up to 23 June, it will also be wondering what Khan has in store. The new London mayor pledged to be “the most pro-business” incumbent to date, when writing in Morning Wire last week. Alongside this promise came a lot of language that, to be blunt, smacked of Labour-style managerialism; Khan talked of “engagement with business” and his desire “to form a true partnership with business”.
He wants a “skills taskforce” and said that he can create modern office space for start-ups. Rather than expend too much time of such initiatives, the new mayor should focus on three big areas that require bold – and sometimes unpopular – decisions.
The first is housing. Khan promised that 80,000 new homes will be built per year – this cannot be achieved without building up, or building out. City Hall needs to explain how the target will be achieved, and take on the inevitable opponents of any reforms.
The second is transport. Businesses are exasperated by Westminster’s inability to make a decision on airport expansion; we now have a mayor who favours Gatwick, a government-commissioned report that heavily backs Heathrow, and a Tory party that is divided among its top echelons. Khan must push Prime Minister David Cameron to confront this issue and not kick it any further into the long grass. And he still needs to demonstrate how he will fund investment in London’s transport infrastructure at the same time as freezing fares.
The third is immigration. Across the UK, pro-immigration sentiment may be politically toxic, but many of our most promising sectors (such as London’s tech industries) can only thrive with access to the best global talent. Our city needs a mayor to make that case.
Khan has won the popularity contest, hands down. Now he must show that he can govern with equal success, and is strong enough to make unpopular decisions.