Sadiq Khan 'out-Tories' himself to defend tech firms' tax bonanza

Nancy Taaffe, Waltham Forest Socialist Party

London Labour mayor Sadiq Khan's recent interview in the London newspaper City AM (31.1.20) reveals once more that Sadiq may be the son of a bus driver but he's firmly a friend of the multinationals and corporate companies in London.

Not content to be a consistent critic of Corbyn and Corbynism he seems to have out-Toried himself in this recent interview. He says he doesn't support the noises made by "Saj" - Sajid Javid, Tory chancellor, regarding taxing global tech firms like Google and Facebook.

No one believes that the Tories are going to take on multinationals like Amazon, Google and Facebook; everyone believes that this is the Tories trying to feed into the popular mood against corporate tax evasion.

But even that is too far for Sadiq Khan. Not content to be the 'property developers' man', this interview reveals he is also the 'global-tech-giant tax-advisers' man'. City AM concludes: "The tech giants will be rooting for him".

His remarks came in a week where he has stated that every council tax bill in London should go up by £40 a month to make up for Tory police cuts.

There is no mention of mobilising the London working class to demand that if, as the Tories have stated, austerity is over, then it's over and we shouldn't have to pay one penny more. No, Khan immediately pushes further misery onto a struggling London working class.

Sadiq Khan, photo Policy Exchange (Creative Commons) (Click to enlarge)

His tax comments also came on a day when 'Dial-a-Ride' workers took strike action against Transport for London (TfL) over pay. These workers provide a service to those with mobility issues who rely on it so they can play a full role in society.

TfL comes under Khan's jurisdiction. Khan is content to make these workers struggle while the tech giants get off paying the taxes that should be used for these services.

The Socialist Party stands for taxing these companies to make them pay their fair share and we do not believe that regions or countries should be held to ransom by the threat of multinationals leaving if they are taxed. The major companies should be taken into democratic public ownership so they can be run in the interests of the many, not the few at the top.

The Tories have recently intervened in the case of Flybe and Northern Rail. These interventions are only to use public money to bail out the private model, only to be handed back later for some other greedy boss to bleed dry.

The Socialist Party raises the need for companies to be owned and run by working-class people so that we can't be held to ransom by a tiny elite of very rich people.

Khan won't raise these issues because he's a Blairite who doesn't believe in socialist policies. This is why he has to be challenged.

London Socialist Party is raising money to fight for socialist policies in May's Greater London Assembly and mayoral elections, and potentially to put forward socialist candidates.

If you are angered by Khan's recent remarks, donate to our campaign for there to be socialists in city hall. The London Assembly and mayor need to work for those that make London work.

Go to www.socialistparty.org.uk/donate and mark your donation 'Socialists into City Hall'.

This version of this article was first posted on the Socialist Party website on 3 February 2020 and may vary slightly from the version subsequently printed in The Socialist.

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Finance appeal

The coronavirus crisis has laid bare the class character of society in numerous ways. It is making clear to many that it is the working class that keeps society running, not the CEOs of major corporations.

The results of austerity have been graphically demonstrated as public services strain to cope with the crisis.

The government has now ripped up its 'austerity' mantra and turned to policies that not long ago were denounced as socialist. But after the corona crisis, it will try to make the working class pay for it, by trying to claw back what has been given.

The Socialist Party's material is more vital than ever, so we can continue to report from workers who are fighting for better health and safety measures, against layoffs, for adequate staffing levels, etc.
When the health crisis subsides, we must be ready for the stormy events ahead and the need to arm workers' movements with a socialist programme - one which puts the health and needs of humanity before the profits of a few.