The Conservative mayoral candidate for London has been criticised for saying the “dangerous” Notting Hill carnival should be moved and claiming there was a “problem with crime” in the black community.
David Lammy said it was “astonishing” that someone running to be the capital’s mayor had expressed such “offensive views”.
The shadow foreign secretary, a London MP, was asked about Susan Hall’s comments a week before the Notting Hill carnival is due to be held in London, with almost 2 million people expected to celebrate Caribbean culture and community in the biggest carnival in Europe.
Hall has repeatedly said it should be moved away from its location of Notting Hill, where it has been held since 1966. In 2020 she said that “every year residents go through this hell”, that it was “astonishing” the carnival was allowed to go ahead in its current location, and asked: “Why do we permit this vandalism every year?”
“I attended Notting Hill carnival last year [2019] to understand the police operation,” she said at the time. “It was unbelievable. I don’t think the public realise just how dangerous it can get. Astonishing that we should put our police in this position every year and the cost to the taxpayers is eye-watering.
When it returned to the capital after Covid last year, Hall said: “Of course police officers dread it, there is always violence and they put themselves in danger at every Notting Hill carnival. The cost of policing it is eye-watering. How long will it be allowed to continue in this way? Crazy.”
In 2019, she said the carnival had become too big and should be moved – despite saying it was an “incredible event”. She added: “I’ve already said on Twitter that I think the carnival should be moved. For the safety of the police, the innocent that attend and the poor residents that live in the area, because some of the stories are appalling.”
Hall is not alone in suggesting moving the Notting Hill carnival. Ken Livingstone, then the London mayor, floated the idea of starting the carnival in Hyde Park and proceeding to its original venue but this proposal was abandoned after opposition.
The Metropolitan police federation also called for the route to be changed last year, saying they did not have the resources to police it effectively. Last year one person was fatally stabbed, more than 70 police were injured and 200 arrests were made.
A spokesperson for Hall said she made “no apology for condemning violence at public events and demonstrations” and that she was proud to celebrate London’s diverse communities.
The Conservative candidate has also criticised Black Lives Matter protesters. After the murder of George Floyd in the US, she said of a June 2020 London march, with thousands of people turning out in support of Black Lives Matter: “What a surprise, the protests have turned violent – says no one.”
The protest was peaceful for most of the day, but later there were clashes with police. At least a dozen arrests were made and a police officer fell from her horse. In 2021, Hall tweeted: “Please don’t ever mistake me for a BLM supporter.”
Lammy said: “In London, we’re proud of our diversity and it’s something we celebrate and see as a strength, not a weakness. London has been shaped in many ways by black and Caribbean culture and heritage, and there is no greater celebration of this than Notting Hill carnival, which is famous around the world.
“For someone running to be mayor of London to express these offensive views about Notting Hill carnival and London’s black communities is astonishing. But it’s just another example of how the Tory candidate is a hard-right politician who is out of touch, does not share London’s values.
“It’s also deeply worrying that someone running to be mayor of a city as diverse as London has spoken out so aggressively against those campaigning for greater racial justice. Her views make her totally unfit to be mayor.”
Hall has previously been criticised for having said in February 2022 in a London Assembly committee that a major “problem” was being accused of racism for expressing some of her opinions in relation to crime in the black community.
“Problems with crime within the black community is something I have brought up constantly because we need to assist those communities,” she said. “The problem is, the minute we do we are accused of being racist or as near as damn being racist.
“We need to be speaking out where there are issues. It is because of this, it is because we are frightened, especially as politicians, especially as white politicians, we are frightened of even saying that. There is an issue with crime in the black community in London. We need to help those communities, but God forbid somebody like me should be saying that.”
In 2020, Hall also suggested to the Sky News journalist Sophy Ridge that asking about how many black people were in cabinet was tokenism. “How many black people are in the cabinet asks #Ridge she knew the answer, journalists have hit an all time low,” she said. “This is not what it’s about, we need justice and fairness through society not tocanism [sic]. I am disgusted by demonstrations during the pandemic and by ridiculous reporting.”
