**MYTH:** Sadiq Khan praised a "Brexit-hating socialist" Spanish PM who "just handed 500,000 migrants legal status" as if this represents dangerous policy alignment.
**TRUTH:** This inflammatory framing deliberately distorts Spain's humanitarian regularisation programme and uses xenophobic dog-whistles to attack legitimate migration policies. Spain's regularisation initiatives, which provide legal pathways for undocumented migrants already contributing to Spanish society, are evidence-based policies that boost tax revenue, reduce exploitation, and strengthen labour markets - not reckless "handouts" to undeserving outsiders.
The loaded language here - "Brexit-hating socialist," migrants being "handed" status, and the implication that Khan's diplomatic engagement is somehow improper - reveals the article's true purpose: stoking anti-immigrant sentiment rather than informing readers. Spain's approach follows successful models used across Europe, including previous UK programmes, where regularisation reduces administrative costs, increases tax compliance, and improves working conditions for all workers by eliminating undercutting through illegal employment.
Mayor meetings with international counterparts are routine diplomatic practice, and Spain's migration policies are developed through democratic processes based on economic evidence and humanitarian obligations. Framing legal migration pathways as threats serves only to legitimise discrimination against migrants and asylum seekers who strengthen communities and economies across Europe.
*Sources: European Commission Migration Policy Reports; Spanish Ministry of Interior statistics; LSE Migration Research Centre*
Fact-checked on April 30, 2026