Sadiq Khan has been criticised for "plotting to drag Britain back to the EU" after pushing for the relaxation of immigration restrictions.
In his latest intervention, the Mayor argued a “youth mobility agreement” - or changes to post-Brexit visa rules - would enable young people to travel more freely to and from the bloc.
He claimed such an agreement would lessen the economic and cultural damage inflicted by the UK’s decision to leave the EU.
Current visa rules restrict travel and the ability to work in other European countries.
Sadiq Khan has been criticised for "plotting to drag Britain back to the EU" after pushing for the relaxation of immigration restrictions
PA
But taking a swipe at the Mayor's plan, former Conservative Party deputy chairman Lee Anderson told GB News: "The best way to encourage more people to London would be if Mayor Khan sorted out the rampant crime and stopped robbing the motorist."
Conservative Party Chairman Richard Holden accused Khan of "plotting to rip up our new relationship with the EU" and "drag us back" by "stealth".
He said: "It’s hardly surprising Sadiq Khan wants to drag us back into the EU given Sir Keir Starmer spent years trying to block Brexit then overturn the largest democratic vote in British history – and now he’s plotting to rip up our new relationship with the EU and even drag us back into the EU by ‘stealth’ with plans to hand millions of EU nationals the vote.
“Rishi Sunak and the Conservatives will continue to build on our freedoms and stick to the plan which is working and has seen us have higher economic growth than either France or Germany.
“It couldn’t be more clear that Labour would take us back to square one.”
A Conservative Party source suggested the Mayor is simply "repeating Keir Starmer's lines".
The Labour leader promised to renegotiate the Brexit deal in 2025 to allow a "closer trading relationship" with the bloc.
Khan told The Observer: “The Government’s hard Brexit has done damage right across London and it is young people who have been hardest hit in so many ways.
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“Not only is it more difficult for young people to move abroad for work, but the Government’s wrong-headed decision to leave the Erasmus scheme has made it much harder for students to study abroad too.
“I’m clear that I’d be supportive of a youth mobility scheme, which would benefit us economically, culturally and socially.
“While the UK may no longer be part of the EU, London is, and always will be, a European city.”
