- Wednesday, May 08, 2024
By: Keerthi Mohan
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has been criticised for turning London’s New Year’s Eve fireworks into a tribute to the European Union.
Brexiteers have accused the Remainer mayor of shoving his political views in the faces of the 17.4 million voters who chose to leave EU in the 2016 Referendum.
“It’s low, it’s very low to politicise what is an international public event,” Tory MP Andrew Bridgen was quoted as saying by The Sun.
“It’s a betrayal of democracy and it’s what we have come to expect from a very poor mayor of London. Over three million EU citizens have decided to make the UK their home despite Brexit. I wish all our politicians had as much confidence in post-Brexit Britain as these people.”
Defending his action, Khan said the fireworks send “a message of support to more than one million EU citizens who call London their home. By paying tribute to our close relationship with Europe as we welcome in the New Year, we will once again show the world that London will always be open.”
Khan has previously voiced his concerns over the effects of a no-deal Brexit on London and had called for the public to be consulted on Brexit.
“One of the things which upset many, many Londoners and many people across our country and in Europe is the tone and language used by politicians in Westminster, giving the impression we’re insular, inward-looking, not welcoming to Europeans,” he said, according to Mail Online.
“I think the Government’s made a mess of negotiations with the European Union. Bearing in mind Parliament can’t resolve the issue of how we will leave the European Union, we should allow the public to take back control with the option of staying in European Union, or accepting the deal made by the government.”
