Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan has unveiled a £7 million campaign to rebrand London and counter online disinformation that he says is damaging the capital's global reputation. The initiative, delivered by London & Partners, will launch in September and target audiences in Europe, the United States, and Asia.
Campaign aims to showcase London's strengths
The campaign seeks to promote London by highlighting its rich heritage, world-class experiences, culture, creativity, and role as a centre for innovation and trade. Khan described online disinformation as a global scourge, stating that London has faced a relentless and unprecedented attack of lies and hatred on social media.
Rise in negative social media posts
A Greater London Authority (GLA) report earlier this year found a nearly 200% increase over the past two years in social media posts portraying London as dangerous or in decline. The report also noted that social media users in Asia are being targeted with disinformation about London, with some months seeing over 15,000 posts on X in Japanese claiming the capital is lawless and under Islamic governance.
One account used AI imagery to falsely claim that millions attended a Unite The Kingdom rally organized by activist Tommy Robinson.
Khan's response to criticism
Khan emphasized the need to fight back on a global scale, saying, 'Disinformation about London has become a truly global scourge. It’s a money-making industry pushing lies about our capital and preying on people’s fears around the world, so we must fight back on a global scale.'
US President Donald Trump has previously accused Khan of doing a terrible job, claiming crime in London is through the roof. However, the Metropolitan Police reported that the homicide rate in London dropped to its lowest in 11 years in 2025. The force still has high rates of personal robbery and theft, with phone thefts being a significant problem. Figures show that between 2017 and February 2024, 587,498 phones were stolen in London, with only 13,998 recovered.
Political reactions
Susan Hall, leader of the City Hall Conservatives, said Khan should spend more time fixing issues rather than ignoring them. Reform UK's mayoral candidate Laila Cunningham argued that if the mayor wants to encourage tourism, he should address crime instead of suggesting victims are liars.
