Sadiq Khan lavishes praise on Jeremy Corbyn in bid to heal rift with Labour leader
2 min read
Sadiq Khan heaped praise on Jeremy Corbyn as he delivered the conference speech the party leader’s team tried to block.
The London Mayor said Mr Corbyn deserved all the credit for the gains made by Labour at the general election.
And he predicted that “under Jeremy Corbyn will win the next general election”.
The speech was a far cry from previous comments Mr Khan has made about the Labour leader, who he once said was “extremely unlikely” to become Prime Minister.
The mayor was only given the green light to make his address to the party faithful last week when the committee responsible for the conference agenda overturned a decision to keep him off the main stage.
Labour bosses had insisted the move was aimed at giving ordinary party activists more time to speak, but critics claimed it was punishment for Mr Khan’s previous criticisms of Mr Corbyn.
After receiving a standing ovation when he took to the stage, the mayor said: “Theresa May called this snap election to try and wipe us out. And boy did she fail.
“It was inspiring to see millions of people vote for the first time - especially so many young people. And it was inspiring to see so many people who used to vote for our Party return home to Labour.
“We made huge progress in the general election and the credit for that goes to one person – the leader of our party - Jeremy Corbyn. He mobilised our movement. He motivated our activists and reached voters we hadn't reached before.”
Mr Khan added: “I’m optimistic about Labour’s future. Optimistic that we’ll build on the success of Labour in power in London, Manchester, Liverpool and Wales; that we’ll make more progress in the local elections next year; that we’ll make a huge difference to the lives of millions; that we can build a fairer Britain. A more prosperous Britain. A safer Britain.
“And that Labour under Jeremy Corbyn will win the next general election.”
The mayor also led a lengthy round of applause for the emergency service workers who dealt with the many terror attacks on London this year, as well as the Grenfell Tower fire.
He said: “On behalf of all Londoners - and the entire Labour party - thank you for everything you do. You truly are heroes.
“In the darkness of this year the bravery of our emergency services has been a beacon of hope.”
PoliticsHome Newsletters
PoliticsHome provides the most comprehensive coverage of UK politics anywhere on the web, offering high quality original reporting and analysis: Subscribe
