Khan Under Fire for Claiming Crime Concerns Are “Disinformation”

Mayor Sadiq Khan faces mounting criticism over his recent attempts to portray concerns about London’s rising crime rates as foreign-driven misinformation campaigns, despite official statistics suggesting these worries may be well-founded.

In a recent speech at a “disinformation summit,” Khan claimed that social media posts highlighting London’s crime issues – particularly knife crime, shoplifting, mobile phone theft, and violence against women – were likely misinformation spread by bots operating from abroad. He specifically blamed “extreme right-wing groups,” pro-Kremlin or pro-Beijing agents, and “MAGA-aligned keyboard warriors” for pushing what he termed “London in decline” narratives.

Khan’s claims were based on research commissioned by his own office and conducted by a City Hall research unit. The report alleged that negative narratives about London on social platform X had increased by 150-200 percent over the past two years, while migration-related discussions had surged by over 350 percent.

However, the research methodology has raised significant concerns. The report itself acknowledges its limitations, describing its findings as “indicative” and noting results are “sensitive to query design, time windows and event-related activity” – essentially admitting that changing keywords or timeframes could dramatically alter the conclusions.

The researchers also admitted facing restricted access to platform data, casting doubt on whether they obtained a representative sample of posts. More importantly, they failed to consider that major events – such as the Southport attack, summer riots across major cities, and high-profile crime incidents – may have organically driven conversation about London’s crime situation.

While Khan frames crime concerns as foreign disinformation, official statistics tell a different story. Between 2016 and 2023, knife crime in London rose by 54 percent, and robbery increased by 57 percent during the same period. Mobile phone thefts jumped from 91,481 in 2019 to 117,211 in 2024 – significant increases reflected in official crime data.

Khan himself has previously faced accusations of spreading misinformation. In 2024, his claim that “knife and gun crime, homicides and burglary have all fallen since 2016” was challenged by the Office for National Statistics, which clarified that while knife crime with injury involving victims under 25 had declined, total knife crime had actually increased significantly since he took office.

The mayor’s approach to concerns about crimes committed by individuals who entered the country illegally has also drawn criticism. When questioned by London Assembly members, Khan has typically responded that no data suggests this is a growing problem in London – technically accurate only because police don’t systematically record immigration status in crime statistics.

Available data from other sources indicates such concerns may be justified. Foreign nationals comprise 10.9 percent of the UK population but accounted for 25 percent of sexual assault convictions and over 20 percent of rape convictions in 2024. The Baroness Casey audit confirmed that in Greater Manchester, 52 percent of suspects in multi-offender grooming cases were of Asian ethnicity, against a local population that is 21 percent Asian.

Critics suggest Khan’s attempts to reframe crime concerns as disinformation serve a political purpose ahead of London’s 2028 mayoral election and upcoming local elections, where Labour is expected to lose control of several London councils, including Camden, Wandsworth, and Westminster.

Particularly troubling to free speech advocates is Khan’s call for communications regulator Ofcom to take enforcement action against what he characterizes as harmful content. This approach contradicts the principle articulated by Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis that the remedy for objectionable speech is more speech, not censorship.

As London continues to grapple with genuine crime challenges, the debate over how to address them – and whether concerns are legitimate or manufactured – appears unlikely to subside anytime soon.