London Mayoral candidate series: Natasha Asghar

London Mayoral candidate series: Natasha Asghar

There is a long list of reasons why I decided to throw my hat into the ring to become the Conservative candidate for next year’s Mayor of London election.

Aside from being asked by countless Londoners to “go for it” another reason which really spurred me on was my love for London, my passion for its people, my desire to see businesses thrive and my wish to see it a place that is welcoming to everyone.
Because let’s be honest, it’s the people from all walks of life and the brave entrepreneurs who make our capital city.

My overarching aim is to restore London to its former glory before Labour’s Sadiq Khan started to neglect it. A place we are all proud to call home, where businesses thrive, people can move about freely, get on the property ladder and we all feel safe.
Sadly, under Sadiq’s watch, this hasn’t happened with the current – and hopefully soon to be departing – overseeing serious financial mismanagement. Trust me, this is not an issue unique to Sadiq Khan – it’s a Labour thing. Just take a look at the economic blunders and financial damage being carried out by his colleagues in the Labour-led Welsh Government – something I have seen with my own eyes and fought against.

As Conservatives, we all know the importance of businesses – no matter the size – and how they play a pivotal role in our economy. I’d argue they are the backbone of our economy and it’s imperative we create an environment where they thrive – not just survive as is currently the case in London. Although some aren’t even surviving, with London being deemed the worst region for business closures in the UK.
In fact, for the first time in six years, the number of new businesses opening in London has been outstripped by closures. Nearly 77,000 business shut up shop in 2022 – compared to just over 69,000 opening their doors for the first time. Those aren’t just numbers. We’re talking about people’s livelihoods and Londoners’ jobs. Just let that sink in. We need to turn the tide. We need to prove that London is open for business and that it is a strong and competitive place for businesses. And that’s why one of my main missions – should I be successful – is to work with businesses, experts and other key stakeholders to drive growth, create jobs, protect our current businesses and support those who want to open in the capital. As things stand, the policies being churned out by Sadiq Khan are actively damaging our economy – ruining businesses and attacking working people.

One of the big disastrous brainwaves stemming from City Hall is of course the expansion of ULEZ – something I’ve been strongly against from the beginning.
This is nothing more than a tax on workers and forms part of Sadiq’s anti-car, anti-businesses, anti-growth agenda. Squeezing more money out of hardworking residents at a time when many are already struggling to make ends meet will be a very bitter pill to swallow. As I am sure most people are aware, the expansion of ULEZ is happening in late August with anyone not meeting Sadiq’s strict criteria having to cough up daily charges of £12.50. And don’t even get me started on his ‘scrappage scheme’ – it’s simply laughable. New vans can be expensive, so I am not quite sure how far Sadiq’s £5,000 scrappage grant will get you. Just so no one is in any doubt, if I end up getting the keys to City Hall next year, scrapping ULEZ – and the associated court cases – would be high up on my agenda.

The economy is of course one of my top priorities, but I have many more – including tackling crime, making London safer, transport, housing and clamping down on wasting taxpayer cash to name just a few. Crime on the streets of our capital has spiralled out of control since Sadiq Khan came into power. Homicide has rocketed to an 11-year high; knife crime has risen by nearly 40% with robberies and burglaries also climbing. It’s a sad fact that people of all ages – no matter their backgrounds or ethnicity – simply don’t feel safe in their communities anymore. As a woman, the tragic case of Sarah Everard’s murder shook me to the core, as I know it did the rest of London. It was simply unfathomable how a service Metropolitan Police officer could commit such a heinous crime. As a result, the public’s trust, confidence and support in the Met Police reached an all-time low. Personally, I have always held the police in high esteem, but there is no denying there are some serious issues within our force. Those deep-rooted issues need to be tackled with the utmost urgency, yet all we’ve had from the incumbent mayor is words – not action. My pledge to Londoners is that I would work closely with the Met Police constructively to stamp out these problems and help restore faith in those on the thin blue line.

Transport is another big issue close to my heart and not only because I am currently Wales’ Shadow Minister for Transport. I have already touched on ULEZ, but now I want to focus on the ridiculous 20mph speed limits being rolled out. Having reduced speed limits outside highly populated areas such as schools, playgrounds, places of worship and high streets is sensible – but not a blanket, one-size fits all approach. Local people and local authorities are best placed to decide where targeted action needs to be taken and that’s why I would work closely with them on this issue. Rolling out 20mph speed limits, I fear, will seriously damage the economy, cost obscene amounts of money to implement, and make motorists’ lives a misery. Other, more eco-friendly, alternatives are out there, and I would much rather explore some of those than push ahead with 20mph speed limits. London is blessed with a great public transport network – especially when compared to other cities and areas around the UK. And it’s not until you see first-hand some of those other areas that you really appreciated what we have. Take Wales for example, buses rarely turn up, trains are unbelievably unreliable with regular delays and cancellations. We should be proud of London’s public transport network and should be doing all we can to maintain and improve it. Yet since London turned red, prices for fares have only risen, concessionary fares have taken a hit and services have flatlined.
We must not forget that Transport for London was teetering on the edge of bankruptcy until a last-minute deal was reached with the UK Government.

When I was younger, I always dreamed of owning my own house and thankfully that came true, but sadly the same can’t be said for today’s youngster generation.
That needs to change. The mayor was given nearly £9billion from the UK Government to tackle London’s housing crisis – and we are still to see meaningful change. According to Combined Homelessness and Information Network (Chain) 8329 people are sleeping rough in London and that number alone breaks my heart.
What exactly has the current Mayor done to help these people? Everyone deserves a permanent home, but the chronic shortage of affordable housing in the capital means too many Londoners find themselves homeless – and according to the charity Shelter it is expecting a ‘sharp rise’ in homelessness in 2023. Recently Sadiq boasted about London meeting the Government’s target of 116,000 affordable homes by 2023. Yet if you dig a little deeper, the reality is that he only hit the target thanks to the 7,189 homes built under Boris Johnson when he was Mayor. Without the homes built under Boris, Sadiq would’ve fallen short of his target by more than 6,000. He is not focusing on meeting the people’s need for a home with a little bit of garden and a little bit of space. I’m seeing high rise flats in places that don’t need those flats. People need affordable homes for life.

As an ex-banker, from where I am standing, it looks as though Sadiq Khan is extremely out- of-touch and has no regard for the public purse. You only need to see the vast amounts of cash he’s wasted on public relations. As someone who worked in media and PR for over a decade, I was astonished that his PR bill for 2020/21 stood at £1,097,285 – a huge jump from the £732,000 spent in 2015/16. For such vast sums of money to be spent I have not seen what benefit this has bought to Londoners in any sense. And the overall cost of the mayor’s office sky-rocketed from £3.8million in 2015/16 to £6million in 2020/21.Frittering away the public’s money is something that really doesn’t sit right with me, and that’s why, if elected, I would seriously clamp down on wasteful spending. As someone who has watched Sadiq Khan’s time in City Hall from the side-lines, and as a resident who has been affected by his actions, I can safely say he has been a hugely disappointing Mayor.. What has he really achieved for London? I have seen how he likes to sit in his ivory tower and loves to regularly shirk responsibility which solely lies in his lap and instead points his finger at the UK Government for all his shortcomings. Instead of fobbing off blame and responsibility, London needs a mayor who will step up to the plate, work with others, and be happy to be held to account.

London needs a mayor who serves the city’s residents – not themselves.
And I believe I have what it takes to be a voice for every Londoner.