I'm focused on first 30 days, hitting the ground running

Mayor sets out aims and claims: working with Labour will be transformative

- Ross Lydall

SADIQ KHAN today vowed to improve the lives of young Londoners as he officially signed in for a third term as Mayor.

He said his next four years would focus on “giving the next generation a chance”, from providing free school meals to primary school pupils to increasing the supply of affordable homes.

Speaking at the “declaration of office” at Tate Modern, Mr Khan said he was “acutely aware that these are challenging times and that there’s more to do in every direction”.

He said: “What I’m thinking about is the first 30 days, the first 100 days. We have got a plan. We are going to hit the ground running.”

He played down the historical significance of having claimed a third victory on Saturday — no other mayor has achieved this since the Greater London Authority was formed in 2000 — by saying his priority was getting on with the job. However, he dismissed suggestions by Rishi Sunak that the next general election was likely to result in a hung parliament.

Mr Khan said the scale of his re-election as Mayor meant the Prime Minister was deluded to believe the country was not set for a Labour victory.

In his first interview since Saturday’s comprehensive trouncing of Tory rival Susan Hall, Mr Khan told the Standard: “I think Rishi Sunak should consider giving evidence to our [City Hall] commission on the consequences of smoking cannabis, because he is clearly on something.”