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Reform UK’s candidate for London Mayor Laila Cunningham joins Steve and Harry this week to set out her plan to “fix a broken London” on crime, housing, unions, immigration and culture, and to challenge what she calls the cosy consensus between Labour and the Conservatives.
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A write-up of this episode is available at the bottom of this post.
This week on Voices
All the articles put out on Voices for a Free Future over the last week, in case you missed any.
Episode Write-Up
Steve Baker and Harry Richer sit down with Reform UK’s London mayoral candidate Laila Cunningham to ask what it would take to “fix a broken London.” Cunningham argues that a cosy consensus between Labour and the Conservatives has left the city over‑regulated on planning, unsafe on the streets, and unaffordable for young people. She links the housing crisis to stalled housebuilding, strict environmental and planning rules, and a system that she says too often prioritises new arrivals over long‑standing residents and veterans.
She then turns to crime, policing and transport, describing a city where brazen shoplifting, low‑level disorder and violent incidents have eroded trust. Cunningham wants tougher use of criminal behaviour orders, more visible neighbourhood policing and clearer backing for officers, alongside a tougher stance on repeat offenders. On transport she criticises the power of transport unions to shut the city down with strikes, suggesting that if disruption continues London should move towards automating parts of the Underground to keep workers and students moving.
A large part of the conversation explores culture, integration and identity. Cunningham argues that Britain’s model of multiculturalism has failed because it treated British civic culture as optional, saying newcomers should be welcomed and free to celebrate their heritage but expected to “become one of us.” Drawing on her background as a British‑born Muslim and former CPS prosecutor, she defends positions on face coverings, public religious events and the need for equality before the law. She closes by saying it upsets her to hear people ask what has happened to London, insisting that the city is part of her and that her candidacy is driven by a desire to restore its safety, opportunity and shared sense of Britishness.
