Sadiq Khan vows to return his controversial he/him gender pronouns to his X bio as he blames a ‘technical error’ that noticed them quietly eliminated
The Mayor of London has vowed to reinstate his ‘he/him’ pronouns to his X bio after blaming a ‘technical error’ for their quiet removal.
Today, users on X noticed that Sadiq Khan silently removed the gender pronouns from his account, which boasts 3.1 million followers.
Khan’s previous bio read: ‘Husband, father, and Mayor of the greatest city in the world. He/Him. Tweets before 9 May 2016 are from the previous Mayor.’
However it now has the same message describing him as the ‘Mayor of the greatest city in the world’ with no mention of his gender pronouns.
Despite some users assuming the quiet removal of ‘he/him’ was deliberate, he has since blamed it on a ‘technical error’.
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London, told MailOnline: ‘This seems to be a technical error, which we’ll put right as soon as possible.’
But this isn’t Khan’s first gender row, as his staff were previously banned from using the phrase ‘ladies and gentlemen’ as part of a drive for inclusivity in 2023.
Civil servants working for the Labour London Mayor were also barred from describing migrants as ‘illegal’ and were instructed to refer to them as ‘insecure immigration status’ or ‘undocumented’.
Sadiq Khan as vowed to reinstate his ‘he/him’ pronouns to his X bio after blaming a ‘technical error’ for their quiet removal
Today, users on X noticed that Sadiq Khan silently removed the gender pronouns from his profile, which boasts 3.1 million followers (pictured)
An image of the Mayor of London’s previous bio, which included ‘He/Him’ pronouns
The inclusivity guide for City Hall also urged employees to scrap the use of ‘asylum seekers’, instead demanding workers say ‘people seeking asylum’.
The ‘woke’ memo, previously leaked to The Sun,was blasted by Conservative critics who branded the document’s contents ‘absurd’ at the time.
‘This is the sort of nonsense that would be imposed on the whole country if Labour were ever to get into power,’ Tory MP Tom Hunt said in June 2023.
‘If you’ve illegally entered our country and broken our immigration laws you’re an ‘illegal immigrant’ end of. No ifs or buts.’
In the guide’s section on gender, staff were told: ‘Avoid using “men and women” – say “people” or “Londoners”.
‘Similarly, instead of “ladies and gentlemen” say something that doesn’t exclude non-binary people.’
The memo reportedly went on to describe the terms male and female as ‘dated and medicalised’.
It also said that ‘female humans are called ‘girls and/or women’, male humans are called ‘boys and/or men’.
Pictured is an example of some of the banned phases issued to staff working for the London Mayor’s office in 2023
In the guide’s section on gender, staff were told: ‘Avoid using ‘men and women’ – say ‘people’ or ‘Londoners’
Tory MP Miriam Cates lashed out at the guidance and told The Sun: ‘The idea that “male” and “female” are medical conditions is frankly absurd. This taxpayer-funded guidance is in conflict with fact, reality and the law.’
And on the issue of migration, the guide reportedly urges workers to not ‘make a distinction between “migrants” and “Londoners”.
‘Remember, we are all Londoners,’ it adds.
Unconscious bias training is mandatory for all new staff at the Greater London Authority (GLA). The GLA’s inclusive language guide was last updated in April 2022.
A spokesperson for the GLA said at the time: ‘This guide is about encouraging precision, offering recommendations and highlighting things for staff to consider, not banning words.
‘London’s diversity is its greatest strength and it is right that the language we use to talk to and about London’s communities is as accurate, inclusive and representative as possible.’
