Arise Sir Sadiq Khan: Muslim London mayor receives knighthood

London’s three-term mayor Sadiq Khan has been awarded a knighthood in the UK’s New Year Honours list. 

While the mayor emphasised that he was “truly humbled” by the recognition, the announcement also sparked significant criticism from right-wing figures, including Reform and Conservative politicians. 

In a post on X, Khan stated that he “couldn’t have dreamed when growing up on a council estate in south London that I would one day be mayor of London.”

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy congratulated Khan, celebrating the achievement as a testament to Britain’s diversity. 

“I’m proud that the UK is a place where you can go from being the son of a bus driver to being a knight of the realm,” Lammy said of the London mayor.

Khan became the first Muslim mayor of a major Western city when elected in 2016.  His policies, such as the ultra-low emission zone, and efforts to combat knife crime had drawn frequent criticism from the right, leading some to condemn his knighthood.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp referred to the honour as a “reward for failure”, citing increased knife crime, unmet housing targets, and rising council tax under Khan’s tenure. 

Philp commented: “Under Sadiq Khan, Londoners have faced a 61 per cent increase in knife crime, a housing crisis, and a 70 per cent rise in council tax – they will rightly be furious his track record of failure is being rewarded.”

“By rewarding the failing Sadiq Khan, Keir Starmer has shown once again that for Labour, it is Party first, country second,” he continued.

A petition launched by Conservative councillor Matthew Goodwin-Freeman opposing Khan’s knighthood garnered over 200,000 signatures since 5 December. 

Following the backlash, many took to social media to accuse critics of perpetuating underlying biases against Khan. 

On social media platform X, British journalist Ally Fogg wrote, “Sadiq Khan is & always was a centrist, passably competent managerialist who has done nothing especially remarkable (far less radical) in his long tenure, and the wingnut right’s success in portraying him as a crazed Islamist who has ruined London is both remarkable & revealing.”

Another user questioned the disparity in reactions to Khan’s knighthood compared to that of Andy Street, the Conservative former Mayor of the West Midlands. 

“The far-right thugs will be seething with faux righteous indignation about one but not the other. I wonder why,” they wrote. 

Khan secured his historic third term as mayor in May, defeating Conservative candidate Susan Hall. Before entering politics, he worked as a human rights lawyer and was elected MP for Tooting in 2005.

As shadow justice secretary under Ed Miliband’s leadership, he gained national prominence. His global profile was further boosted by a high-profile feud with Donald Trump during the former US president’s first term, with the two frequently clashing over policy and rhetoric.