Boris Johnson orders fire crews to help Qatar World Cup

Boris Johnson faced criticism today for sending London firefighters to help Qatar in its preparations for the 2022 Fifa World Cup.

The Mayor ignored the concerns of the fire authority, which said employees should not be sent to the Gulf state given concerns about worker safety.

Mr Johnson was accused of a “tasteless” pursuit of profit and of putting the London Fire Brigade’s reputation at risk by ordering it to help advise Qatar on building its new underground rail network, one of several infrastructure projects being carried out ahead of the tournament.

Qatar has been accused over its treatment of migrant workers, who campaigners say are made to work long hours in searing temperatures for low pay, and live in overcrowded and often squalid accommodation. They estimate a migrant construction worker died every two days last year. The Qatari government disputes the figures.

Campaigners have also criticised Qatar, which Mr Johnson has visited twice to drum up business for London and which is a major investor in the capital, for its human rights record.

The LFB’s ethical code on what commercial work it should undertake states “the opportunity to work in Qatar would not be taken forward given current concerns about human rights”. But in his mayoral direction, Mr Johnson said: “There is not a clear-cut argument to say that refusing to trade with a country with a questionable human rights record would result in an improvement to that record.”

Labour’s London fire spokeswoman, Fiona Twycross, said: “Boris Johnson must be the only person on the planet not to know that there are serious human rights and health and safety problems in Qatar.

“The fact is that Qatar’s record on construction projects is appalling. Hundreds of workers have died on construction sites as part of Qatar’s World Cup preparations. The idea that we should be sending fire brigade staff into that environment is unbelievable. The Mayor’s eagerness to turn a quick profit is frankly tasteless and risks damaging the reputation of the LFB.”

A spokesman for the Mayor said: “London and Qatar are trading partners and London’s transport and police services are already providing consultancy to the country, with the support of UK Trade and Investment.

“It would be inconsistent if the LFB were prevented from providing their world-class expertise to help deliver a major infrastructure project like Qatar’s underground system.”@PippaCrerar