Sadiq Khan, the Labour mayor of London, was formally knighted by King Charles III at Buckingham Palace on June 10, 2025, becoming the first sitting Mayor of London to receive this honour. According to the politician, the British Monarch apologised to him for the decision to take so long.

Khan, the son of Pakistani immigrants and raised on a council estate in Tooting, called the event “a truly humbling moment” for himself and his family, hoping it would inspire others by embodying “the London promise” that hard work and help create opportunity.

„I have got the pleasure of working closely with the King. We were just comparing who’s a bigger workaholic,” the London Mayor said during the ceremony.

However, the investiture stirred debate. Critics—particularly from the Conservatives—decried it as a „reward for failure,” pointing to persistent issues like rising knife crime, the continued housing strain, and dissatisfaction with the ULEZ regime.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp argued Londoners were „furious” given these statistics. Meanwhile, Khan’s supporters highlighted tangible accomplishments like improved air quality and expanded school support, urging that his record justified the honour.

As Sir Sadiq Khan returns to his duties, his knighthood stands as a flashpoint—heralded by some as a milestone of social mobility and public dedication, and criticised by others as premature given the city’s unresolved challenges including night knife crime rate.

Source: Telegraph, The Sun

Photo: X @SadiqKhan

Tomasz Modrzejewski