Sadiq ought to cling his head in disgrace for joking about London’s machete epidemic | Politics | News | EUROtoday

This morning Londoners watched on, in helpless despair, as a 14-year-old boy was murdered and 4 others injured by a lunatic wielding a machete in a suburban road.

A 36-year-old has now been arrested after his rampage in Hainault, with politicians fast to supply their condolences and voice shock on the assault.

Sadiq Khan took day trip of his day shortly in the past to explain the sickening assault as “devastating and appalling”, telling Sky News: “I’m sure I speak on behalf of the entire city when I say our thoughts and prayers are with this young child and his family.”

Clad in a funeral black tie, Mr Khan’s phrases will do little to assist the grieving household devastated by immediately’s assault.

Anyone watching his media efficiency shouldn’t be fooled by his crocodile tears.

Just final week London’s complacent and cocky Mayor thought it acceptable to not simply downplay the capital’s worrying machete epidemic, however make mild of it with a joke.

Speaking throughout an LBC hustings, his rival, Susan Hall, accurately noticed that Britain’s capital is “under siege” from “gangs running around with machetes”.

Mr Khan’s response? “I say in a respectful way that the Tory candidate should stop watching The Wire. We’re not living in Baltimore USA”.

Presumably, Sadiq’s unique draft assertion on this morning’s bloody occasions additionally had him telling the grieving household to cease worrying about London’s rampant knife epidemic and cease pondering they’re residing in a US cop drama.

A father and son had been attacked by a stranger and a baseball bat exterior Sainsbury’s final 12 months, leading to quite a few accidents; a machete-wielding teenager stabbed a Deliveroo driver; a person in his 20s was stabbed exterior a South London mosque; gangs of youths regularly seem on my Twitter feed attacking one another in broad daylight with the terrifying weapons.

Should all of those victims, Mr Khan, merely “get a grip”, as you implied to your opponent?

Mr Khan might have gotten away along with his disgusting feedback too, had this morning’s occasions not unfolded so quickly after he made them.

In the 12 months to December 2023, knife crime offences in London hit 14,577, a 20% enhance from the earlier 12 months.

They account for nearly one-third of all knife crime offences recorded in England and Wales.

But for the households of these affected by London’s lawless streets, Sadiq Khan sought to dismiss fears and considerations with a flippant joke.

The Tories could also be in a shoddy state nationally, however what have Londoners executed of their previous lives to deserve Sadiq Khan?

At the very least our Mayor ought to have instantly apologised for his sickening response to real fears – or maybe he might have simply blamed the outburst on his attribute rudeness and misogyny – however as a substitute he doubled down when confronted by MyLondon three days later.

He claimed: “When talking about London, [Susan Hall] talks about these sorts of incidents we see in American fictional programmes.”

Sadiq Khan actually couldn’t care much less, and his phrases this which means ring completely hole.

He shouldn’t get away with it, and Londoners ought to suppose lengthy and laborious, forward of the native elections, about whether or not he deserves the necessary workplace he holds.