Crystal Palace is getting “ready to rumble” on May 7 at the Queen’s Hotel with a packed Election Question Time cross-borough panel debate.

With Town Hall elections on May 22 across Croydon and in the neighbouring London boroughs which converge on Crystal Palace – Lambeth, Southwark, Bromley and Lewisham – the Crystal Palace Chamber of Commerce will be hosting what it believes will be one of the largest multi-borough gatherings of local in recent times.

The debate will be chaired by Jonathan Croucher a former City law firm partner and now the vicar of Christ Church, Gipsy Hill.

The event will begin at 7pm in the Balmoral Suite of the Queens Hotel on Church Road. It is open to all local residents and traders of Crystal Palace.

“The local community is very civic-minded, demonstrated by the attendance of around 130 residents in the Salvation Army Hall for The Information Project’s event on Who Owns Culture this week,” said Robert Gibson, a board member of the Chamber of Commerce.

“That event proved that there is a lot of passion around the issue of Crystal Palace Park. We expect the park again to feature highly on the Question Time agenda, but also the funding shortfall for the Upper Norwood Library which serves all five boroughs.

“Local residents not only have been raising the issue of the library but also the shortage of school places and the closure of children’s centres. The cinema is also sure to feature and issues like the housing crisis, traffic, parking, rubbish and the commemoration of the First World War are also expected to feature.”

Steve O’Connell with London Mayor Boris Johnson promising a tram link to Crystal Palace in 2012 which has never been delivered

Four of Crystal Palace’s five boroughs will be represented on the panel with members from four political parties:

• Helen Hayes Southwark Labour councillor for College ward and Labour
  party candidate for Tessa Jowell MP’s seat of Dulwich and West Norwood
• Pat Ryan Croydon Labour councillor for Upper Norwood ward, trade unionist (CWU)
• Tom Papworth Bromley LibDem councillor for Crystal Palace ward and
  group leader of Bromley Liberal Democrats
• Steve O’Connell Conservative councillor for Kenley ward, Croydon council cabinet member for finance and performance management, GLA member for Croydon
  and Sutton. He is deputy chair of the planning committee
• Tom Chance Bromley Green Party candidate for Crystal Palace. Works for
  GLA member Darren Johnson
• Matthew Bennett Lambeth Labour councillor for Gipsy Hill ward and works for Lambeth South MP Steve Reed OBE
• Graham Pycock Lambeth Conservative candidate for Thurlow ward, has formerly served as a Lambeth councillor for 12 years;
• Angela Wilkins Bromley Labour candidate for Crystal Palace ward and director at Good Governance Foundation

Inside Croydon’s recent coverage of the local elections:

• These are the councillors who voted to build on a public park
• Tory council pays public money to private school for election count
• Telegraph poll suggests UKIP poised to win Town Hall seats
• Tea-time leaflet leaves Easter egg over faces of Waddon Tories
• What Barwell fails to tell you and the myths of Council Tax
• Council allowances and local politicians’ secret consensus
• The list of candidates for the May 22 local elections

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  Coming to Croydon

  • Warlingham Sevens Heaven tournament, May 3
  • Elm Tree Cottage garden open day, May 4
  • David Lean Cinema: Wadjda, May 8
  • Coulsdon Euro election hustings, May 8
  • David Lean Cinema: Blue Velvet, May 10
  • Norwood Society Talk: West Norwood – a place of change, May 15
  • David Lean Cinema: The Invisible Woman, May 15
  • Coulsdon West local election hustings, May 16
  • Croydon RFC charity memorial day, May 17
  • Coulsdon East local election hustings, May 19 (confirmed)
  • St Giles’ primary school open morning, May 21
  • David Lean Cinema: The Rocket, May 22
  • David Lean Cinema: Dallas Buyers Club, May 29
  • Elm Tree Cottage garden open day, June 15
  • Norwood Society Talk: The Concrete Church, June 19
  • Classic Car Show at Purley Rotary Fields, June 22
  • Crystal Palace Overground Festival, June 26-29
  • South Norwood Allotments open day, June 28
  • Elm Tree Cottage garden open day, Aug 10
  • Norwood Society Talk: War Memorials, Sep 18
  • Norwood Society Talk: From Fire Station to Theatre, Oct 16
  • Norwood Society Talk: Lambeth’s Archives, Nov 20

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