An exciting new job for the ambitious Clare Hilley, Waddon’s newest Tory councillor.
Clare Hilley: her future, conservatively, is with a new job
As well as claiming nearly £12,000 for her council duties, and holding a leading position in “Conservative Future” (that’s the re-branded and re-named Conservative youth wing), Hilley’s just landed herself a plum job at HardHat, a West End PR agency that focuses on the construction industry.
Here at Inside Croydon Towers, we wonder whether she’ll soon find herself busy spinning the positives out of any construction schemes going on in Croydon?
Such as, for example, the £450 million Croydon Council “hub”, which promises to deliver wonderful new offices for what’s left of the council staff after her Conservative colleagues have managed to make large swathes of employees… well, err, unemployed.
According to blurb on the HardHat site, the agency draws its PR consultants from the range of political parties – a sort of chameleon approach that allows them to be all things to all public bodies and developers when it comes to doling out cash commissions.
“Our team brings together political and media professionals who have a genuine practical understanding of the development process from land buying, through planning and construction to sales,” Andrew Howard, the agency’s managing director, says.
Which reminds us: we must check what “genuine practical” experience of land buying, planning, construction or sales our local Waddon councillor has.
Howard continues: “We want to be judged on our record and the value we add working collaboratively with clients, architects, planners and technical consultants to mange [sic] political media and community communications.” Thems our italics. “I think we have the strongest team within the industry.” If a bit light on proof readers, eh, Andrew?
Somewhat more coyly, HardHat’s website’s bio for Hilley describes her as being a councillor for “a large London borough”. Why not mention Croydon by name?
Updated Nov 9 2011: “Councillor Clare George-Hilley has pointed out that there are clear rules in the Council’s Code of Conduct regarding the registration and declaration of interests and the need where appropriate to withdraw from meetings. She has assured Inside Croydon that she has at all times adhered to the Code and will continue to do so, and it is not Inside Croydon’s intention to suggest otherwise. Councillor George-Hilley and all other interested parties are always welcome to submit their comments for publication on this article”.
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