Our political editor, WALTER CRONXITE, on one of the more intriguing twists to emerge from the nominations for next month’s council by-election
Andrew Rendle: once one of Newman’s great loyalists, now a FibDem
It is often said that the Liberal Democrats in Croydon stage their meetings in a phone box.
To see their candidate for the Fairfield council by-election, Andrew Rendle, out on his own in the autumn rain, dutifully delivering his leaflets door-to-door, you can understand why.
The by-election has been called in Fairfield ward following the sudden resignation of Labour councillor Niroshan Sirisena for what his local party has described as “a serious incident”, and which the council leader, Tony Newman, has admitted is a matter subject to a police investigation.
There’s been no further explanation for why Sirisena, a leading figure in the local Momentum group, felt compelled to resign his council seat barely 18 months after being elected, although it is understood that the now ex-councillor has been, to borrow an oft-used phrase, helping the police with their enquiries.
