Boris Johnson's London Legacy #42: Never-Used Water Cannons

Will Noble
By Will Noble Last edited 64 months ago
Boris Johnson's London Legacy #42: Never-Used Water Cannons

An occasional foray into former Mayor of London, Boris Johnson's legacy. This time: three second-hand water cannons.

Water cannon Boris Johnson London
A water cannon in use in Istanbul. Image: Shutterstock

Sorry, water cannons? That's right. As mayor in 2014, Johnson purchased three second-hand Wasserwerfer water cannons from the German police. They cost the UK taxpayer £218,000 — plus significantly more for modifications, including a grand on new stereos.

What did we need water cannons for? Controlling unruly mobs apparently. You know, like they did in the USA against protestors during the Civil Rights Movement. Exactly the classy kind of image of 21st century London you want to peddle.

How much use did we get out of them? Approximately none. Johnson didn't think to check if he could use the cannons, and soon after, his own colleague, then-home sec Theresa May, banned the use of water cannons across England and Wales. Johnson visibly seethed in the House of Commons:

Couldn't we use them for anything else? At the time, we suggested the watery white elephants could be used to water another of Johnson's London legacies, the Garden Bridge. Spoiler alert: since then, that project has been scuttled too, rinsing £46m of public money.

Two things you'll never see in London

But we got a good price for the cannons when we sold them on, yes? What, three quarter-century old water cannons? I mean, if you count selling them to a Nottinghamshire scrap merchant for £11,025 — at a £300k loss — then absolutely.

Is Boris totally to blame then? Some have pointed out that current Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said he'd sell the cannons on for over £40k. It wouldn't surprise us if Johnson jumped on this claim, and put the whole debacle down to Khan's incompetence.  

Last Updated 19 November 2018