#London : British PM David Cameron has hailed Labour’s Sadiq Khan as “proud Muslim” and “a proud Brit” as he shared a platform with the London Mayor at an EU Remain rally.
Mr Khan defended his decision to campaign publicly with the Tory PM.
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Speaking at the event in Roehampton, in south-west London, he said: “There are many things on which the prime minister and I will disagree. But what’s really important is when it’s in Londoners’ interests for the mayor and the government to work closely together, we will work closely together.”
He claimed “more than half a million jobs” in London depended on the UK’s membership of the EU, adding: “A vote for Remain means jobs and opportunities.”
Staying in the EU meant more measures to fight climate change, “workers’ rights protected and more rights for women,” he added, and he urged young people to “get involved” in the referendum and register to vote.
‘Proud Londoner’
Mr Cameron congratulated Mr Khan on his victory in the Mayoral contest, saying: “I’m proud to be here with the mayor of London – with the Labour mayor of London – on this vital, vital issue.”
He hailed the fact that “someone who is a proud Muslim, a proud Brit and a proud Londoner can become mayor of the greatest city on Earth. That says something about our country”.
The prime minister said he expected many disagreements with the London Mayor but they were both part of “an incredibly broad campaign” in favour of EU membership.
Mr Cameron described himself as a “Eurosceptic” but said the ability to criticise the EU is “a cause of strength in our campaign… we’re levelling with people, something the other side refuses to do”.
The two men unveiled a “five point guarantee card” listing what they say voters will get if they vote to Remain on 23 June.
The card promises “full access” to the EU single market, protection of workers’ rights, “a safer Britain” with co-operation with other EU states, the UK keeping its “special status” within the EU, outside the euro and the Schengen passport-free area and with an opt-out from the EU’s aim of “ever-closer union” and “stability”.
During London’s Mayoral election race, Mr Cameron repeatedly attacked Mr Khan for having a history of sharing platforms with extremists, which Mr Khan rejected.
At Prime Minister’s Question Time in the Commons some Labour MPs denounced Mr Cameron as a racist when he attacked Mr Khan’s judgment.
In other EU referendum developments:
The World Trade Organisation’s former director-general has warned that the UK economy risks a “huge blow” if it relies on the agency’s global trading rules in the case of an EU leave vote.
Labour’s police and crime commissioners have signed an open letter urging a Remain victory, because they say leaving the EU would risk national security.
On Sunday, senior Tory ministers Michael Gove and Boris Johnson challenged Mr Cameron on immigration, saying he must accept the failure of the government’s manifesto pledge to reduce migration into the UK. They said the pledge was “corrosive of public trust” while Britain remained in the EU.
And former Labour prime minister Tony Blair said leaving the EU would create “an enormous economic problem”.
Sunday’s row over the migration target came as Conservative in-fighting over the EU referendum intensified.
Mr Cameron and most of his cabinet are campaigning for a vote to stay in the EU, but about half of his MPs support an exit.
Conservative Leave campaigner Andrew Bridgen had told BBC Radio 5 live’s Pienaar’s Politics that as many as 50 Tory MPs were ready to back a vote of no-confidence in the prime minister over his handling of the debate.
But leading Leave advocate and Labour former minister Frank Field said it was a “mistake” by the Leave side to question the question the prime minister’s integrity and the Out campaign should concentrate on the issues.
Remain campaigner Ken Clarke said voters were fed up with Conservative in-fighting and claimed the EU referendum campaign turning into “a kind of leadership bid for Boris Johnson”.
The veteran Conservative MP dismissed the former London mayor as a “nicer version of Donald Trump” leading a campaign based on immigration fears that were “about as relevant” to the real issues as Mr Trump’s US presidential campaign.
Mr Clarke told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme many Leave campaigners were more interested in toppling the prime minister than having an informed debate about the merits of continued EU membership.
Number 10 dismissed the personal attacks as a “distraction” intended to move attention away from the economic arguments for remaining in the EU. According to BBC reports,
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