London Diary: How safe is London? Don’t ask Trump

A transatlantic row has erupted over the Trump administration’s characterisation of London as the crime capital of Europe overrun by “Islamic fundoos” under its Muslim mayor Sadiq Khan who, it seems, has turned parts of the city into “no-go” zones — so dangerous even the police are “afraid” to enter.

Trump has attacked Khan personally, calling him a “stone-cold loser” (whatever that might mean) who wants to impose Sharia law and has “so changed” London that it is unrecognisable from the city his mother used to love. On his state visit to the UK last year, Trump said he “didn’t want” Khan at the state banquet hosted by King Charles and described him as “among the worst mayors in the world”.

Vice-president J.D. Vance has also joined the chorus. London, he said, “doesn’t feel fully English” any more as it is full of immigrants and antisemites. Similar comments have been made by Elon Musk and other MAGA supporters.

Not one to take it quietly, Khan accused Trump of “sowing hate and division”. “London is a global success story — it’s open, dynamic and safer than major US cities. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons a record number of Americans are choosing to make London their home,” Khan said.

Now, the London Metropolitan Police, too, has hit back, outrightly rejecting claims that crime is “out of control” in Britain’s capital.

Commissioner Mark Rowley has said the “vast majority” of Londoners feel safe and accused “pundits” of stoking fear. Cases of homicide are down to their lowest since 2014, Rowley said, releasing figures to back his claim.

“Rather than looking at the evidence… it’s the rhetoric of, frankly, pundits… People who live and work in London generally feel safe,” he added, citing a poll which showed that his claim is supported by 63 per cent of Londoners.

Well, who believes Trump, anyway?

UAE accuses UK varsities of harbouring Islamists

British universities are routinely accused by right-wing groups of harbouring radical Islamist groups in the garb of students and teachers. But for the first time, a Muslim country — the United Arab Emirates — has made a similar charge and cut funding for its citizens to study in Britain.

It has expressed concern over the influence in British campuses of the Muslim Brotherhood, a group banned in the UAE as a terrorist organisation. Abu Dhabi has long campaigned for European nations, including Britain, to do the same.

According to media reports, while the Emirati government is not imposing a blanket ban on enrolments and rich families can still send their children to study in the UK if they are self-funded, government grants and fellowships will be restricted to citizens seeking admissions to universities in countries other than Britain.

The decision is part of the UAE’s wider crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood, which it describes as a threat to its relatively secular and socially liberal system.

The US has designated Muslim Brotherhood offshoots and individuals as terrorists but stopped short of labelling the group as such. However, concerns do remain that the group has infiltrated university campuses, using student organisations to spread its ideology.

Indian-origin expats in cash-for-visa scam

The British government has ordered an investigation into a cash-for-visa scam involving a group of Indian-origin expats, who were found selling fake UK travel documents and job permits.

Roop Masih, Zack and Komal Shinde reportedly run Krishiv Consultancy Ltd, which offers ‘all UK immigration services at lower cost with a high success approval rate’.

In a video filmed by an undercover reporter with the Mail posing as an Indian film studies graduate, Shinde said she could sell him a skilled worker visa for £12,000 plus.

She also offered to arrange a Global Talent visa for a fee of £32,000. These visas are meant for those with exceptional talent and can result in indefinite leave to remain after three years.

The exposure follows a parliamentary report that found ‘widespread’ abuse of skilled worker visas. India and Britain have had a long-running diplomatic row over repatriation of illegal Indian migrants, with Delhi refusing to take them back because they lack documentation proving Indian citizenship.

No surprise, really, as most illegals destroy their identity papers on arrival, claiming they are stateless.

More politically correct pronouns?

If you thought you had had enough of gender-sensitive pronouns, consider this. A local London council governed by the Labour party has announced a series of new gender-neutral versions such as ze/zir/zem, and directed its employees to announce their preferred pronouns at the start of a meeting.

A leaked internal memo from Wandsworth borough council to its staff said: ‘Up until recently, the only pronouns most people had heard of are he/him/his and she/her/hers. As the non-binary community has become more visible, more people are becoming aware of non-gendered pronouns such as ... ze/zir/zem.’

Susan Smith, director of the campaign group For Women Scotland, described “pressuring staff to make this declaration a discriminatory act against those who do not subscribe to this ideology”. The council, she said, was making a “laughing stock” of itself.

And, finally, there’s a new word to describe a dystopian vision of Britain as a broken country: ‘calamitism’