Sadiq Khan urges social media crackdown over London crime ‘disinformation’
Sadiq Khan has warned that London is at the center of a “dark blizzard of disinformation” online and called on the government to stop the spread of misinformation on social media.
According to data from the Greater London Authority (GLA), general posting activity related to London increased by around seven per cent between March 2024 and March 2026, while “London in decline” narratives increased by around 150-200 per cent and immigration-related narratives referencing London increased by more than 350 per cent.
But official figures show that many crime rates, including serious violent crime and murders, have fallen.
Speaking at a disinformation summit in Cambridge on Thursday evening, the mayor said the government must do more to force social media companies to stop people “profiting from division”.
He warned that failure to act could lead to more domestic terrorism crimes being committed by people who believe conspiracy theories they see online.
“We are right to expect big tech to do better, but we shouldn’t rely on it,” Sir Sadiq said. “If platforms fail to act, the government must have the tools to do so. That is why I will continue to lobby the government publicly and privately to take a much tougher approach.
“We need a new central body with the agility and authority to protect our democracy from disinformation and deal with the scale and pace of this crisis. And we need more aggressive enforcement of the rules we already have. Because unless regulators like Ofcom have the power to hit companies where they cause harm, they will continue to get away with it.”
New data from the GLA shows that misleading narratives about London online often relate to immigration and cultural identity, as well as claims that the city is unsafe or in decline, as well as antisemitic or homophobic narratives.
The report also found “clear signs of coordinated and inauthentic activities,” including the use of AI-generated content to produce and amplify misleading claims.
The report shows the involvement of state actors and far-right groups from outside the UK, including accounts aligned with Russian or Chinese state interests and US-linked political movements. This included a Vietnam-based Facebook network of at least 42 pages; In total, approximately 1.25 million posts were followed by repeating AI-generated images and followers impersonating local media outlets.
Other networks included a Sri Lanka-based content farm that produced monetized AI-generated posts and a Nigeria-based cluster that mimicked UK media outlets.
Narratives surrounding phone snatching, violence against women and girls and knife crime were frequently seen, along with lower volume but “persistent” posts about public health, climate and LGBTQ+ issues.
Sir Sadiq said in his speech: The economy of anger is eroding the fundamental bonds of trust that hold our societies together. This isn’t just a challenge for progressives like me. This is a challenge for everyone who believes in democracy, wherever they are.
“The same people who attacked the capital are already targeting other cities around the world. And I think in a few years we’ll look back at London as the canary in the coal mine. But hopefully we’ll also see it as where the struggle began.”
A Department for Science, Innovation and Technology spokesperson said: “Under the Online Safety Act, social media platforms are required to remove unlawful misinformation and disinformation to help protect our communities from harm online and offline. Ofcom has strong enforcement powers it can use where platforms fail to do this, and it has our full support to take action where necessary.”
