Silvertown Tunnel: London mayor complains about Newham mayor

The mayor of London Sadiq Khan has complained about the conduct of a Labour borough leader in an increasingly bitter row over plans for a new river crossing.

He responded to a comment shared on social media by Newham mayor Rokhsana Fiaz, which accused the mayor's office of "lies and half truths" over the Silvertown Tunnel.

Mr Khan raised it with senior Labour councillors on London Councils, the body which represents the capital's 33 local authorities.

Construction is about to start on the 1.4km (0.9 mile) tunnel beneath the River Thames linking the Royal Docks and the North Greenwich peninsula.

But protest groups accuse the mayor and Transport for London (TfL) of downplaying the tunnel's impact on traffic and air pollution.

Activists believe a reduction in pollution can only be achieved through a toll on the neighbouring Blackwall Tunnel, as well as Silvertown. Mr Khan has the power to introduce the levy - but later incumbents could reverse it.

In a post on Twitter - retweeted by Ms Fiaz - the Stop the Silvertown Tunnel Coalition criticised recent claims made in favour of the project.

In a statement, the group said: "The disastrous Silvertown Tunnel project has been pushed forwards by TfL and the mayor's office with a relentless campaign of lies and half-truths.

"Don't believe us? Check out this latest PR leaflet. In three short 'background' paragraphs, there are no less than five straight-up lies."

Newham's mayor has consistently opposed the tunnel, but her public endorsement of the campaigners' critical language and accusations of dishonesty has angered City Hall.

It is understood the mayor's concerns were passed on to Ms Fiaz, but no further action has been taken.

A member of Mr Khan's team complained about Ms Fiaz to the deputy leader of Waltham Forest Council, Clyde Loakes. Mr Loakes is chief whip for the Labour group on London Councils, of which Ms Fiaz is also a member.

It is the chief whip's job to oversee conduct and discipline among the leaders of the 21 Labour-held councils in London.

One Labour source described the situation between the two mayors as "really awkward" given the need to work together to redevelop the Royal Docks - a regeneration project which has so far proved problematic.

London's mayor recently shifted the HQ of the Greater London Authority to a new home at The Crystal in Canning Town. It is in the borough of Newham, which makes the pair near-neighbours too.

A City Hall source, though, disagreed that personal relations between the pair of mayors was strained. They remained good, the source said, and they had talked to each other at two events in the past week.

Last month Mr Khan and Ms Fiaz attended an event about the prospect of redeveloping Millennium Mills, a derelict flour mill alongside Royal Victoria dock.

The plan is to turn it into shops, leisure facilities and homes.

Meanwhile the tunnel-boring machine due to dig under the river later in the summer is being assembled on site in Silvertown.

The Silvertown Tunnel could prove to be one of the most contentious issues in Sadiq Khan's time as mayor, casting a shadow over his efforts to improve air quality.

Newham is not the only borough against the tunnel - it is also opposed by Greenwich Council, the other "host" borough.

But Tower Hamlets - under newly elected mayor Lutfur Rahman - may decide to back it.

The Greens at City Hall, having failed to block it, said they want more emphasis on using public transport.

Mr Khan said the tunnel was vital for economic reasons and to "address the imbalance with the centre and west of London which have so many more crossings".

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