Sadiq Khan accused of 'cosying up' to Jeremy Corbyn ahead of Mayor selection

The Mayor has been accused of cosying up to the Labour leader
Jeremy Selwyn
Pippa Crerar|Ben Morgan2 February 2018
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Sadiq Khan today set out plans for mandatory ballots of residents ahead of major housing regeneration schemes as a strict condition of his funding.

The Mayor appeared alongside Jeremy Corbyn to make the announcement which, though popular with many residents, could hamper town halls’ ability to build thousands of homes.

The Labour leader welcomed the proposal, which comes days after a major row over regeneration in Haringey, which he said would help prevent the “social cleansing” of estates.

But council leaders reacted angrily, with several suggesting that the Mayor’s lurch Leftwards suggested he was putting his reselection prospects above solving London’s housing crisis.

City Hall insiders said Mr Khan is concerned that the Momentum-backed Left could challenge his bid this summer for a second term as mayor.

Sadiq Khan and Jeremy Corbyn in Hendon
Jeremy Selwyn

The Mayor denied he was backing the policy to appease the Labour Left and said he was not worried that the ballots would complicate an already convoluted planning process.

At an event in Barnet, Mr Corbyn warned that too often estate regeneration led to “social cleansing” with residents forced to move out.

He welcomed Mr Khan’s estate regeneration guide, the first from a mayor, saying the ballot proposal, which Labour would roll out across the country, would give locals “real control”.

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Eyebrows were also raised over the timing of the announcement, days after Claire Kober, leader of Haringey council, quit amid claims of “sexism” and “bullying” from the far Left.

She stood down following a row over the council’s plans for a major housing scheme that opponents decried as “social cleansing”.

The Tories accused Mr Khan of “abdicating responsibility” to special interest groups while Labour council chiefs accused Mr Khan of putting his own career above Londoners.

One senior London Labour figure told the Standard: “It looks like a politically motivated move to keep the Left happy ahead of his re-selection.”

Southwark’s Labour leader Peter John said: “The challenge we face in London is the lack of genuinely affordable housing, and the need to invest in our existing social housing stock. Do estate ballots help to solve either of these challenges? Almost certainly not.”

Tory councils also reacted with alarm. Rachael Robathan, Westminster’s cabinet member for housing, said: “The Mayor should let the people really speak, rather than abdicating responsibility to special interest groups.”

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