Member Article

Khan shakes off ‘anti-business’ tag as business approval ratings improve

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, seems to be shaking off the shortcomings of the Labour Party and slowly be winning over London business owners according to the new figures by the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI).

In their ComRes poll of over 500 businesses in the capital, the LCCI found that those surveyed were more likely to consider Khan pro-business (39%) than anti-business (16%), with successful initiatives such as the Night Tube and Khan’s backing for expansion at London City Airport seemingly winning over sceptical business leaders.

While the proportion of those deeming the Mayor pro-business has remained unchanged since a similar poll in Q1, the number of those who consider Khan anti-business has dropped from 16%, while those who consider him neutral to business interests has risen from 20% to 31%.

Chief Executive of LCCI, Colin Stanbridge said the figures should make heartening reading for the Mayor, but that there was still work to do to firmly win over sceptical business owners.

He commented: “No doubt in one sense the Mayor will view this a good news as it is certainly an improvement on business perception of him before the election.

“However Mayor Khan can’t be resting on his laurels as a third of businesses still think he is neutral and 16 per cent believe he is anti-business.

“While fewer business leaders now see him as anti-business, the proportion who see him as actively pro-business is unchanged, suggesting that business leaders are still cautious about his credentials.”

The numbers also suggest that Khan’s attempts to distance himself from the increasingly beleaguered Labour Party, which has been criticised for its anti-business rhetoric, have been successful.

Back in August, the Mayor took aim at Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in a thinly veiled attack branding the party’s relationship with the business world an ‘embarrassment’.