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Labour calls for Shaun Bailey to condemn ads attacking Sadiq Khan

Angela Rayner asks Tory London mayoral candidate to disavow Fair Tax Campaign’s ‘underhand tactics’
Labour’s deputy leader has called on the Conservative party’s candidate for London mayor to condemn and dissociate himself from “underhand tactics” used by a secretive campaign funding anti-Sadiq Khan adverts online.
Angela Rayner has written to Shaun Bailey asking him to confirm that he had “no interaction or coordination” with the Fair Tax Campaign, which has put out menacing attack ads.
Run by a former aide to Boris Johnson, the group’s ad has attracted the support of Nigel Farage. Labour said it believed the intention of the advert was to rally former Ukip, Brexit party and other rightwing voters into supporting Bailey.
“I am also calling on you to publicly condemn the secretive and underhand tactics used by these ‘campaigns’,” Rayner wrote. “If you fail to do so it will be clear that you welcome this association between rightwing and far-right candidates, organisations and political campaigns.”
In response to the letter, Bailey’s campaign denied it was linked to the group. “Shaun Bailey has no involvement with the Fair Tax Campaign, which is entirely independent of the Shaun Bailey campaign,” a spokesperson said.
The spokesperson accused Labour of being overly concerned about “a small group sharing newspaper articles about Sadiq Khan’s tax rises” and said Labour should ask “whether Sadiq Khan’s tax rises are the problem”, adding: “London needs a fresh start – and it’s not dark or underhanded to point that out.”
The Fair Tax Campaign’s video first appeared on Facebook last month, where the group spent at least £13,730 promoting it. It was also retweeted by Farage before disseminating elsewhere online.
It asks a series of questions about knife crime and transport against the sound of a heartbeat before concluding: “Do you want to use your vote to stop Sadiq Khan ruining our city?” Elsewhere it makes use of the Labour mayor’s middle name, calling him “Sadiq Aman Khan” on a mocked-up ballot paper.
The organisation’s sole director, according to Companies House, is a former Johnson adviser, Alex Crowley, who helped run the Mainstream Network online campaign that called on MPs to “deliver Brexit” on a no-deal basis in 2019. He declined to comment when approached by the Guardian.
Bailey remains far behind in the polls and is trying to force Khan into a second round runoff by ensuring the London mayor gets less than 50% of the vote in the first round.
Groups such as the Fair Tax Campaign, which is campaigning in the mayoral election but not directly acting for a candidate, do not have to register with or report donations to the Electoral Commission, though they are subject to a spending limit of about £30,000.
Crowley has been close to the Conservatives in the past: he was research director and a political director of Johnson’s London mayoral election campaigns in 2008 and 2012. He wrote a book about his early political career. The adviser subsequently worked in Downing Street after Johnson became prime minister but quit in September 2019.
Recent polling from YouGov reported in the Evening Standard has Khan on 47% – down from the 50%-plus levels seen previously. Bailey remains far behind on 26%, with fringe candidates such as Laurence Fox registering 4%.
source: Dan Sabbagh
Levant
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BENEFIT Sponsors BuildHer...
- April 23, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, has sponsored the BuildHer CityHack 2025 Hackathon, a two-day event spearheaded by the College of Engineering and Technology at the Royal University for Women (RUW).
Aimed at secondary school students, the event brought together a distinguished group of academic professionals and technology experts to mentor and inspire young participants.
More than 100 high school students from across the Kingdom of Bahrain took part in the hackathon, which featured an intensive programme of training workshops and hands-on sessions. These activities were tailored to enhance participants’ critical thinking, collaborative problem-solving, and team-building capabilities, while also encouraging the development of practical and sustainable solutions to contemporary challenges using modern technological tools.
BENEFIT’s Chief Executive Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi, commented: “Our support for this educational hackathon reflects our long-term strategic vision to nurture the talents of emerging national youth and empower the next generation of accomplished female leaders in technology. By fostering creativity and innovation, we aim to contribute meaningfully to Bahrain’s comprehensive development goals and align with the aspirations outlined in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030—an ambition in which BENEFIT plays a central role.”
Professor Riyadh Yousif Hamzah, President of the Royal University for Women, commented: “This initiative reflects our commitment to advancing women in STEM fields. We're cultivating a generation of creative, solution-driven female leaders who will drive national development. Our partnership with BENEFIT exemplifies the powerful synergy between academia and private sector in supporting educational innovation.”
Hanan Abdulla Hasan, Senior Manager, PR & Communication at BENEFIT, said: “We are honoured to collaborate with RUW in supporting this remarkable technology-focused event. It highlights our commitment to social responsibility, and our ongoing efforts to enhance the digital and innovation capabilities of young Bahraini women and foster their ability to harness technological tools in the service of a smarter, more sustainable future.”
For his part, Dr. Humam ElAgha, Acting Dean of the College of Engineering and Technology at the University, said: “BuildHer CityHack 2025 embodies our hands-on approach to education. By tackling real-world problems through creative thinking and sustainable solutions, we're preparing women to thrive in the knowledge economy – a cornerstone of the University's vision.”
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