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Sadiq Khan has been made a knight in the New Year Honours list, prompting claims that “failure is being rewarded”.

The London Mayor received the award in the first batch of appointments since Sir Keir Starmer entered Downing Street.

But the Tories pointed to spiralling crime, housing shortages and huge hikes in council tax in the capital.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said: “Under Sadiq Khan, Londoners have faced a 61 % increase in knife crime, a housing crisis and a 70% increase in council Tax; they will rightly be furious his track record of failure is being rewarded.

“By rewarding the failing Sadiq Khan, Keir Starmer has shown once again that for Labour, it is Party first, country second.”

Sir Sadiq, who won a record third term in City Hall earlier this year, said he was “truly humbled” to receive the honour.

He said: “I couldn’t have dreamed when growing up on a council estate in south London that I would one day be mayor of London.

“It’s the honour of my life to serve the city I love, and I will continue to build the fairer, safer, greener and more prosperous London that all of the capital’s communities deserve.”

The former human rights lawyer became the MP for Tooting in 2005, serving as a junior minister under Gordon Brown and then as shadow justice secretary under Ed Miliband.

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In 2016, he defeated Conservative Zac Goldsmith to succeed Boris Johnson as mayor of London. He became the first Muslim mayor of a major Western city and went on to win two further terms.

However, his tenure has at times proved controversial, and a petition started by a Conservative councillor opposing his knighthood has racked up more than 200,000 signatures.

He faced intense criticism for expanding London’s ultra-low emission zone (ULEZ) as part of his eco-drive.

Sir Sadiq has also come under scrutiny for his record on law and order.

He has also been embroiled in a long-running war of words with US president-elect Donald Trump, who returns to the White House next month.