BBC mayoral debate: Sadiq and Zac try to set the record straight over ‘extremism’ allegations

As the European referendum campaign gains momentum, the London mayoral election has had to take a backseat in recent weeks when it comes to setting the news agenda. Tonight the mayoral candidates had a chance to turn this around as part of the BBC’s London’s Mayor debate. While Respect candidate George Galloway was left out of the line-up, the five main candidates — Zac Goldsmith, Sadiq Khan, Caroline Pidgeon, Sian Berry and Peter Whittle — joined Andrew Neil for the biggest debate of the campaign. With the election widely seen to be a two-horse race between Khan and Goldsmith, the pair dominated the evening as their campaign feuds bubbled to the surface.

The first topic on the agenda was security. Berry — the Green candidate — said that when it came to defending the city, the mayor’s ‘strongest weapon’ in all of this is leadership, rather than the police. While Labour’s Khan said that he would respond to terrorism threats by ‘encouraging integration’ and seeking ‘reassurance’ over the police precautions in place, Goldsmith managed to offer some figures to prop up his own plan of action.