What do the next four years really look like under Sadiq Khan? Mayor's plans to ... trends now
The capital is facing another four years of 'Khanage' after Sadiq Khan romped to victory in the London mayoral elections over the weekend.
The 53-year-old Labour politician promised Londoners he will make the city a 'safer, fairer, greener' place to live, and creating 150,000 new jobs over the next four years.
But at a closer glance his election manifesto vows to hire 500 PCSOs who have no arrest powers to fight spiralling crime in lawless London.
He also vowed to install thousands of extra charging points for electric vehicles, despite only a tiny fraction of people living in the city owning e-cars.
Mr Khan, who won a historic third term on Saturday, also touted a number of vanity projects to seemingly whet the appetites of voters at the 11th hour.
Among them included bombastic claims of bringing the American Superbowl and more WrestleMania events to the city.
It's the first week back in office for Sadiq Khan after he romped to victory in the London mayoral elections over the weekend
Conservative Party mayoral candidate Susan Hall, left, shakes hands with Mr Khan on stage as he is re-elected for a third time as Mayor of London
Just days before residents went to the polls, Mr Khan posted to his 1.1million followers on X - formerly Twitter: 'London is already the sporting capital of the world. If I'm re-elected next Thursday - we'll go even further.
'We'll look to bring WrestleMania, Superbowl and the NBA to London, and put together another bid for the 2040 Olympics.'
London has hosted NFL American football games every year since 2007 - but the Super Bowl has never been staged outside the United States, raising question marks over whether or not it could ever happen.
NFL chief Roger Goodell said in February that he hoped to make the famed American sporting league 'global' in the next decade.
However, it's uncertain just how London would ever play a part in the crown jewel of the American sporting calendar.
In another bid to woo voters, Mr Khan pledged he would seek to hire 1,300 more neighbourhood police officers, special constables and PCSOs.
Made as one of his top 10 manifesto priorities, his promise comes after months of fierce criticism over his record of tackling knife crime in the capital.
Official figures published a week from polling day revealed knife crime offences in the capital had surged 20 per cent in the last year - while over the course of his eight years in charge, the increase was greater still.
Then 48 hours before voters hit the polls, there was widespread shock and revulsion at the death of 14-year-old Daniel Anjorin - who was killed in a sword attack in Hainault.
Mr Khan says he would 'work with a Labour Government' on boosting policing numbers - as he committed to recruit 500 PCSOs.
In another bid to woo voters, Mr Khan pledged to hire 1,300 more neighbourhood cops, special constables and PCSOs (pictured are two PCSOs on patrol with a Met Police officer)
Daniel Anjorin , 14, was allegedly murdered in a samurai sword attack in east London earlier this week, leading to widespread shock and revolution within the city
Tributes have been piling up close to the scene of the tragedy (pictured: Laing Close in Hainault on Saturday). London Mayor Sadiq Khan said he wanted to make the city a 'safer' place and would be investing in more police to patrol its streets
But there is concern in some quarters that hiring additional PCSOs, who have limited powers and cannot arrest suspects, won't tackle the knife crime epidemic plaguing the city.
Meanwhile, justice campaigners have signalled fears over the huge volume of armed police quitting from the Metropolitan Police since one firearms cop was charged with the murder of Chris Kaba, who was fatally shot by police last year.
In the space of just six months, the numbers carrying weapons dropped by more than 250 between April and December 2023 amid widespread anger within the force over resourcing and disciplinary procedures.
Only 22 armed officers left in the 12-month period leading up to March 2023.
In his manifesto, Mr Khan blamed cuts by the Tory government for creating the crisis, saying the city had been 'held back' by the Conservatives in Westminster.
'The national cuts since 2010 have been a disaster for combatting crime across the country, particularly youth violence,' he said.
'The Tories have cut £1bn from the Met police and £1bn a
