London mayor Sadiq Khan burst out laughing on Thursday night after being challenged about a petition calling for him not to be knighted.
The petition, started by Tory councillor Matthew Goodwin-Freeman, has accrued over 175,000 signatures.
Speaking at People’s Question Time - a twice-annual event where the mayor and London Assembly members field questions from the public - Mr Goodwin-Freeman said: “Nearly 200,000 people have signed my petition to block you getting your knighthood. Do you admit that you are actually just a ‘knight-mare’?”
The question was ruled “out of order” by the event’s chair, Labour assembly member Leonie Cooper, while Mr Khan guffawed.
Ms Cooper pointed out that the question had nothing to do with the economy, which was supposed to be the topic for that section of the evening. “I don’t think the honours system is covered by the economy,” she said.
Asked about his reported knighthood on Friday morning, Mr Khan said: “I’m too busy being the Mayor of London to indulge in those sorts of conversations. Let’s wait and see what the Cabinet Office and the King announces on January 1.”
He dismissed Mr Goodwin-Freeman’s challenge over the petition, saying: “He’s a Tory councillor, a self-appointed commentator, but listen, he knows [in] the last three elections, the amount of votes I’ve got… They [the Conservatives] are used to losing, and let’s hope they carry on losing for the foreseeable future.”
Before mentioning his petition, Mr Goodwin-Freeman - who did not identify himself as an elected Conservative politician - blamed Mr Khan for London’s high cost of living.
“How can anyone afford to live in London anymore?” he asked. “You’ve increased council tax by 71 per cent. Pubs and clubs are closing at record levels.
“You expanded the Ulez against the wishes of Londoners. The Blackwall and Silvertown tunnel charges are coming in, despite the consultation.
“Housing - you’ve started just four per cent of housing [targets], but you were given £4bn by the Conservative Government. Where’s our money? We can’t live in a ‘start’, you have to finish the house.”
Mr Khan jokingly responded by getting Mr Goodwin-Freeman to admit that he lived in Harrow, a London borough - implying that it was evidently possible for the councillor, at least, to afford to live in London.
He added: “It’s worth you explaining that you are a Conservative councillor, is that right?”
Mr Goodwin-Freeman’s claim that “just four per cent of housing” has got started is a reference to the mayor’s current affordable homes programme. The scheme has a target of starting construction on at least 23,900 new affordable properties across the capital by March 2026, but as of the end of September this year, only 2,124 have got started, or nine per cent of the target.
The event’s location - Battersea Arts Centre - was kept secret from the wider public, and was only given to registered ticket-holders three days in advance. The measure was put in place as a precaution to minimise “disruption” during proceedings.
The measure did not appear to have suceeded however, as the event was disrupted in its closing minutes by a man who was removed from the venue by security, after he refused to stop shouting at the mayor.
As he was taken outside, he could be heard shouting that the public was being lied to about the ‘Tooting Four’ - a group of anti-Ulez protesters who last week received total fines of around £1,000 each, when they were found guilty of harassing Sadiq Khan at his home.
Westminster Magistrates’ Court was told the incident took place in April this year, when they staged a protest “approximately 100 metres” from the mayor’s house in Tooting.
