Jason Perry, Croydon’s part-time Mayor, has blamed the council – over which he presides – for the fire that wrecked Thornton Heath’s historic clocktower.
Burnt out: the Clocktower at Thornton Heath after an early morning fire gutted the 122-year-old landmark
Addressing the situation somewhat late (with tweets on Friday afternoon, 36 hours after the fire), Perry said, “there is more the council could and should have done”.
Tory Perry failed to address the 12 years of Tory-imposed austerity on local authorities across the country, which has stripped communities such as Thornton Heath of many of the essential services that used to help make them places people wanted to live in and took pride in.
Mayor Perry did make a firm commitment to the council funding the repair work to the Thornton Heath Clocktower, which was paid for by the community and erected in 1900.
Perry said, “I was appalled to hear of the damage made to Thornton Heath Clocktower yesterday.
Gutted: the internal workings of the Thornton Heath Clocktower were destroyed
“While responsibility sits primarily with the police for tackling crime, there is more the council could and should have been doing over recent years to stop the level of decline we have seen.
“I am a firm believer that the broken windows, dirt and decay which has been allowed to stand in our borough in recent years encourages people to think of Croydon as a place you can do what you please. This has to stop.
“I will await the outcome of the police investigation into the fire, but it is clear that the Clocktower has suffered extensive damage.
“I have instructed the council to carry out a detailed assessment of these damages with a view to restoring this landmark as quickly as possible.”
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Croydon police said they arrested a 34-year-old man on suspicion of arson, and he’s now out on bail.
The police have no power. I witnessed this incident first hand amongst others. The police came out that night before this happened but could not arrest them because the local authority chose not to renew the no drinking zone regulations around the clock tower this year. To be honest for once the police in this area have done a good job at getting rid of various problems around here in the last year. But they also need support. About time those chairs were removed Croydon council. We’ve been asking for this for 3 years.
Scaffolding gone up today