Londoners may regret protest votes for Reform or Greens in local elections, says Sadiq Khan

Exclusive: Capital’s mayor warns people not to use next month’s elections as a referendum on Labour’s progress Sadiq Khan has said he can understand why some former Labour voters are “flirting” with other parties in the run-up to May’s elections, but said that they may regret seeing a Green or Reform-led council in their areas. Speaking to the Guardian at a youth centre, where he was announcing new funding for facilities for young people, the London mayor also cautioned Labour MPs against considering a challenge to Keir Starmer, saying such “navel gazing” would be punished by the electorate. Members of all 32 London boroughs are being elected on 7 May, along with elections at other councils and mayoralties across England, and members of the Scottish and Welsh parliament, with Labour expected to perform very poorly. Across London, a number of Labour councillors in inner boroughs are forecast to lose to the Greens or independents, with Reform hoping to make gains on the edges of the city. Asked if he could understand why Labour might fare worse than usual in the capital, Khan said his call was for people “to vote on the track record of their local councils, rather than using it as a