The mayor of London has urged EU citizens to “choose London” over other European cities, promising to make the UK capital a better place to live and work despite Brexit.
Sadiq Khan told the Guardian he had redoubled his efforts to attract EU citizens since the UK left the bloc, notwithstanding new barriers such as visa requirements.
“That’s where I’ve got a big responsibility. I’ve got to make it more attractive for you to choose London [rather] than Frankfurt or Paris or Dublin,” he said.
“I’ve got to make sure that our nightlife, our museums, our galleries, our values, what we can offer, trumps the ease of going to another European city because of free movement.”
He cited recent high-profile sporting and cultural events, from the popular Abba Voyage show to Major League Baseball.
Pointing out that a million EU citizens live in London, Khan added: “We may have left the European Union as a country, but London is a European city, and I think it’s the capital of Europe.”
EU citizens can qualify for a UK work visa if an employer recruits them to a higher-income role – generally one earning more than £26,200 – but within the EU they can move around visa-free.
As well as creating practical obstacles, Khan acknowledged that the UK’s decision to exit the EU had changed the way the country was viewed across Europe, giving him a tougher task in promoting London as a destination.
“We’ve got to accept as Brits that us leaving the EU has sent shockwaves around the world, including in the EU, about how we’re perceived – fairly or unfairly,” he said.
Noting that there had been a sharp fall in school trips as children were no longer able travel without passports, falling EU student numbers at universities and fewer UK bands touring the continent, the Labour mayor also expressed concern that cultural links built up over decades were being eroded.
He said: “When you go into the European Commission and speak to politicians, or when you speak to chief executives in mainland Europe, a lot of them know London really well. They studied here, they travelled here, they did a foreign exchange here, and they fell in love with the city. And that means they want to invest here. That means they want to come on holiday here. That means they want to do business here.”
Khan fears that over time the decline in contacts like these could have a negative impact, not just on the economy but also on the UK’s values.
He said: “Our generation are tolerant, we’re respectful. There’s less xenophobia, less bigotry. And a lot of that is familiarity, because we’ve got to know that Italian food’s not too bad actually, it’s wonderful; we’ve got to listen to Spanish music; we’ve got to make friends with people who are French. And that’s what worries me in relation to those links.
“Whether it’s courtship, whether it’s friendship, whether it’s business partners – it makes it more difficult.”
Khan is proud of his close connections with European mayors, name-checking among others Anne Hidalgo in Paris, Beppe Sala in Milan and Roberto Gualtieri in Rome.
Among the issues he has discussed with these peers is air quality. Khan has vehemently defended the recent expansion of London’s ultra-low emission zone, a decision the Conservative government has sought to exploit, with the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, claiming to take the side of hard-pressed drivers in a “war on motorists”.
Khan’s administration is based in the angular new city hall building in Royal Docks, in the east of the capital, close to the vast Excel exhibition centre. Floor-to-ceiling windows give him a sweeping view of the rapidly developing area – which on a hot late summer day embraces water-skiers and sunbathers.
He is serving a second term, and faces a re-election battle in May 2024, in which, unlike general elections, EU citizens can vote.
Recent polling has suggested a close race between Khan and the Conservative candidate, Susan Hall.
The government recently changed the voting system for the poll, so that second preferences will no longer be taken into account – potentially damaging Khan, who might hope to pick up second-round support from LibDem or Green voters.
An unabashed opponent of Brexit, Khan has called on politicians in the UK to have a more open discussion about the consequences of Brexit and how to mitigate them, which he believes will have to involve closer alignment with EU rules and practices.
“What breaks my heart is, for the foreseeable future we can’t talk about rejoining the EU: referendums tend to be once in a generation, and I respect that. But even though we’ve got a bad hand, and it will never be as good as being inside the EU, we’ve got to try to make the best of it. And that means alignment and not divergence,” he said.
Despite criticising what he called an “omertà” in British politics about Brexit, he expressed some sympathy for the Labour leader Keir’s wariness about the issue.
“Keir, like me, is a passionate remainer, and he’s got to reassure those people around the country who aren’t quite sure whether we believe what we say when we say we respect the vote of the British public. I get that. I get the politics,” he said.
The risks for Labour of speaking out on Brexit were underlined last monthwhen the Tories gleefully seized on Starmer saying “we don’t want to diverge” from the EU. But Khan insisted politicians could not avoid the topic forever.
He said: “I don’t want to open up division and deadlock, and I don’t want to reopen old wounds, but we’ve got to talk about it.”
In terms of immediate measures – in particular to help alleviate skills shortages in the capital – Khan has backed a proposal by the hospitality sector for a reciprocal youth mobility scheme with the EU.
Such a scheme, already in place for a small number of countries including Australia and Canada, allows 18- to 35-year-olds to work in the UK for up to two years and vice versa.
Khan said: “You speak to any business in this city and they will tell you they have got skills shortages. You speak to some of the best restaurateurs in the world and some of the best chefs in the world, they can’t get staff for love nor money.”
