Lord Khan of Tooting? Sounds like a great idea to me!
It is time that our failing Mayor moved on to challenges new, argues James Ford
Our illustrious Prime Minister is rumoured to be considering raising the Mayor of London to the House of Lords, possibly as soon as next month. There may even be a seat around the Cabinet Table in the offing too.
I, for one, am thrilled at the idea. Yes, dear readers, you read that correctly. I am eager – impatient, even – for little Sadiq Khan to be ennobled and raised to the Upper House.
Of course, I don’t think Sadiq actually deserves a peerage. Having worked for Khan’s far more capable and accomplished predecessor at City Hall, I have actually seen what competence in London city government looks like. (Its falling crime, a world-leading revolution in cycling, iconic infrastructure projects, and a spectacular Olympic Games, for reference). Anyone with even a passing familiarity with my Morning Wire columns will be well aware that I believe Sadiq’s tenure at City Hall represents a lost decade of plummeting housebuilding, stalled transport projects, and economic decline. Worse still, the capital has become a global by-word for crime, violence and two-tier policing. (But best not mention it within earshot as he’s really touchy about his record!)
Why then do I think Sadiq Khan should be draped in ermine and granted a coat of arms? Because it will help end all our misery. A seat in Cabinet will legally require Khan to resign as Mayor of London. Even a peerage without a place as a minister will move him that much closer to City Hall’s exit door and make it almost inevitable that this will be his last couple of years running London into the ground.
A welcome relief
I imagine a change of job would be a welcome relief for Khan himself. No more blaming everyone else for his failures to build enough homes. No pretending that widespread fear of crime on our streets is just a right-wing fantasy when M&S in Clapham is under siege. And no need to keep hiding under his desk every time tube workers strike even though he promised when he came to office he’d end tube strikes. (Actually, he has presided over three times as many days lost to industrial action in a decade as both of his predecessors combined in the preceding 16 years). As the first elected Mayor of London to make it into the Upper House, he can probably spin it as an achievement of sorts as he settles into his rightful place on the red benches alongside Lord Mandelson, Lord Doyle and Baroness Mone.
Unfortunately, I fear there is only a very narrow window in which to get the Mayor into the Lords. By the time votes have been counted in the London local elections on 7 May, Keir Starmer will probably have thought twice. The electoral kicking that Labour is expected to take in that contest will likely make the Prime Minister keen to avoid risking a London-wide by-election for City Hall. And that is before poor Starmer has to try to figure out what Whitehall department he wants to put Sadiq Khan in charge of. His record in London must surely rule out the Home Office, Justice, Housing or Transport. His ongoing war of words with The Donald makes the Foreign Office unthinkable. Perhaps Londoners should start a petition or letter writing campaign to get the transfer moving. What do we want? Lord Khan! When do we want it? Yesterday, if not sooner!
James Ford is former advisor to then Mayor of London Boris Johnson