Gone in a puff of smoke: Barwell’s office becomes vape shop

It was often accused of being the source of an inordinate amount of hot air and noxious gas, so it is perhaps in some way fitting that now, less than three months after Gavin Barwell was kicked out of Parliament by the voters of Croydon Central, his constituency office is being turned into a vape shop.

The shop front on Wickham Road, being transformed from Barwell’s constituency office to something far more useful

Some might see this development as a metaphor for the career of Barwell, who in a puff of smoke after his election defeat re-appeared in Downing Street as the Chief of Staff to the interim Prime Minister.

It is certainly a bit of a come down for Croydon’s Tories.

For more than seven years, the shop premises on Wickham Road in Shirley served as the nerve-centre of most of the local Conservatives’ campaigning in local and other elections, with career politician Barwell pulling the strings, usually for his own personal advantage.

Something’s upset the interim PM

With five full-time employees, including at various times the Tory councillors Jason Cummings, Eddy Aram, Sara Bashford and Mario Creatura, all paid for out of your taxes, three of those staff were based in the constituency office.

It was from there that gaffe-prone Gav was able to pump out huge amounts of leaflets, emails and letters, much of which will have gone straight to land-fill, although some of the nonsense may have polluted Croydon for some time to come.

And now the premises are continuing as a vape shop.

The neighbourhood is clearly on the up.


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News, views and analysis about the people of Croydon, their lives and political times in the diverse and most-populated borough in London. Based in Croydon and edited by Steven Downes. To contact us, please email inside.croydon@btinternet.com
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5 Responses to Gone in a puff of smoke: Barwell’s office becomes vape shop

  1. farmersboy says:

    We were going to start a socialist bookshop and cafe

  2. croydonres says:

    REPORT from INTERN CUB REPORTER Buck Skin

    Above the rooftops between the Upper and Lower Addiscombe Road, and the lush green pastures of Park Hill, smoke signals were recently seen rising from an unseen tepee just North of the Shirley Hills.

    puff…….. Gav has gone from the Great Hall of Chiefs at Westminster.
    puff…….. The Great Interim She-Chief took pity on him, perhaps because he looks so young and vulnerable, and rewarded him with a post of specal counsellor.
    puff…. this has not proved popular with current members of the council of war, and some older braves in the council of 22 wise ex-sub Chiefs

    puff ….. following a rebellion of the people who dwell on the plains and hills of Mid Croydon, a red-headed woman brave from the tribe of JC has now taken control, and is now Chief of all the lands between the shining towers of the Fair field, and the pine woods of Addington.

    (forwarded by Croydon Res)
    who is on holiday)

  3. mraemiller says:

    I would like to say stop gloating but … I can’t

  4. sed30 says:

    Reblogged this on sed30's Blog and commented:
    😂

  5. derekthrower says:

    Well after all these years the “wind” originating from this location will finally be put to some use if it is only a change from an addiction to tripe to an addiction to nicotine.

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