Category Archives: Jane West

15% tax hike sends council hurtling into constitutional crisis

ANDREW PELLING on how Mayor Perry faces a humiliating defeat over his controversial first budget because of some less-than-clear legislation, while the borough’s councillors could be in for some very long nights in the Town Hall Chamber Cash-strapped Croydon Council … Continue reading

Posted in Alisa Flemming, Andrew Pelling, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Jane West, Jason Cummings, Mayor Jason Perry, Stuart King | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Government to write off £540m of council’s debts, as Croydon becomes the Northern Rock of England’s local authorities

Tory minister Michael Gove asked to agree deal that wipes half a billion pounds from council’s mountain of debt After spending months complaining about council’s ‘unsustainable’ debt, Mayor Jason Perry is seeking to borrow another £224m Perry’s 15% Council Tax … Continue reading

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Jane West, Jason Cummings, Katherine Kerswell, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Rowenna Davis, Section 114 notice, Tony McArdle | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Gove’s funding increases have come too late to save Croydon

London’s precept to add nearly £40 to average bills, as Mayor Perry asks government permission for increase of at least 10% for Croydon’s Council Tax, reports WALTER CRONXITE, political editor After 12 years of Tory austerity, the government has taken … Continue reading

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Jane West, Jason Cummings, London Councils, London Fire Brigade, Mayor Jason Perry, Mayor of London, Policing, Sadiq Khan, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Croydon needs deal that could set precedent for all councils

CROYDON IN CRISIS: A government-appointed inspector, council directors and senior councillors all agree that throwing millions more at the cash-strapped council won’t fix its deep-seated problems. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES The Tories who control Croydon Town Hall have already done … Continue reading

Posted in Brick by Brick, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Jane West, Jason Cummings, Jo Negrini, Mayor Jason Perry, Mike Fisher, Section 114 notice, Tony McArdle, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Perry is now asking Croydon public how to fix financial mess

CROYDON IN CRISIS: After issuing the first pre-emptive S114 Notice in British history, the borough’s £81,000 per year Mayor is using a budget survey to justify future cuts to services. By WALTER CRONXITE, political editor Bereft of ideas – beyond … Continue reading

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Jane West, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Gove orders Council Tax review and reform of imperfect system

CROYDON IN CRISIS: The bad example set by our south London borough appears to have nudged Whitehall into looking at the failed system of local government finance. By our Town Hall reporter, KEN LEE Michael Gove has announced a review … Continue reading

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Jane West, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

‘Uncertainty faced by all local authorities is unprecedented’

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Katherine Kerswell, the council’s chief executive, this morning told staff that despite a third Section 114 Notice in two years, she and her senior managers have been making progress with the bankrupt borough’s finances. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN … Continue reading

Posted in Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Council forced to issue 3rd bankruptcy notice in just two years

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Last week, Jason Perry was admitting that ‘things will get worse before they get better’. Six months after taking office, the Tory Mayor is begging for another government bail-out. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Croydon Council this morning … Continue reading

Posted in Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , , , | 38 Comments

Perry misses scrutiny meeting on council’s £19.3m overspend

CROYDON IN CRISIS: According to the borough’s part-time Mayor, the council budget is ‘just numbers on paper’. By KEN LEE Part-time Mayor Jason Perry didn’t bother to show up for last night’s scrutiny committee meeting at the Town Hall, where … Continue reading

Posted in Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Jane West, Jason Cummings, Mayor Jason Perry, Richard Ennis, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Mayor makes rapid U-turn as report confirms £19.3m overspend

CROYDON IN CRISIS: A report to be discussed at the Town Hall tonight confirms the deepening financial problems facing the borough’s new Mayor. EXCLUSIVE by WALTER CRONXITE Part-time Mayor Jason Perry has been forced to admit that his Conservative administration … Continue reading

Posted in Croydon Council, Dr Ola Olasode, General Purposes and Audit Committee, Improvement Board, Jane West, Jason Cummings, Mayor Jason Perry, Richard Ennis, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Kerswell gets her fourth council finance chief in 12 months

Council correspondent KEN LEE reports on the latest bit of empire-building going on at Fisher’s Folly Croydon’s cash-strapped council, which over the past 18 months has been handing out P45s willy-nilly to hundreds of the low-paid front-line workers who grafted … Continue reading

Posted in Annette McPartland, Croydon Council, Hamida Ali, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, Richard Ennis | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments