London mayor Sadiq Khan has been knighted by King Charles at Buckingham Palace.
The mayor was awarded the knighthood in the King’s honours for political and public service.
Sir Sadiq, 54, has been the capital’s mayor since he was first elected in 2016.
The Labour politician was re-elected as mayor of the capital in both 2021 and 2024, making him the first London mayor to win a third term.
He shook hands with the King after being knighted on Tuesday morning.
He joined rugby league star Sir Billy Boston, author Dame Jacqueline Wilson, and entrepreneur Sir Loyd Grossman among those to be honoured at the palace.
Following the announcement of the knighthood in the New Year Honours list, Sir Sadiq said: "I am truly humbled to have received a knighthood in the King's New Year Honours."
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.”
However, the honour sparked some controversy earlier this year, with shadow home secretary Chris Philp calling it "a reward for failure", citing levels of knife crime in the city, and missed housing targets.
A petition started by a Conservative councillor opposing his knighthood received more than 200,000 signatures.
The Tooting-born son of a bus driver worked as a human rights lawyer before entering Parliament as MP for his home town in 2005, serving as a junior minister under Gordon Brown and then as shadow justice secretary under Ed Miliband.
In 2016, he defeated Conservative Zac Goldsmith to succeed Boris Johnson as mayor of London, becoming the first Muslim mayor of a major western city and going on to win two further terms.
Sir Sadiq has taken a firm stance on making London a greener and less polluted place to live, and his ultra low emission zone (Ulez) expansion has split opinion.
Vandals have damaged Ulez cameras and signage, while protesters have gathered in the city on several occasions.
He has also pledged to clean up the Thames, planning to make it swimmable within 10 years.
Sir Sadiq has faced scrutiny over his record on law and order, having regularly clashed with the Conservative government, criticising ministers over police funding and for failing to promptly ban zombie knives.
But he was accused of not taking knife crime "seriously" earlier this year by then cabinet minister Kemi Badenoch.
Sir Sadiq has worked on improving London’s transport as mayor, introducing names and colours for London Overground railway lines in November.
