Recent Comments
Category Archives: Barry Lewis
Sutton budget passes with £34.5m deficits to come by 2029
CIVIC CENTRE SKETCH: Sutton’s annual budget meeting proved to be just a subtext for a pre-election psycho-drama being played out behind closed doors by the ruling LibDems. BERTIE WORCESTER-PARK was there, ready for any guillotine motions During the Reign of … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in 2026 council elections, Barry Lewis, Bobby Dean, Carshalton and Wallington, David Campanale, Ed Parsley, Jayne McCoy, Luke Taylor MP, Nick Mattey, Ruth Dombey, Sheldon Vestey, Sutton and Cheam, Sutton Council, Tim Crowley, Tim Foster, Tom Drummond
|
Tagged 'Basher' Lewis, Barry Lewis, Bobby Dean MP, Cllr Sheldon Vestey, Conservative, Gemma Munday, Jayne McCoy, Leafleting cult, Liberal Democrats, Luke Taylor MP, Nick Mattey, Patrick Ogbonna, Señor Sheldon Vestey, Sheldon Vestey, St Helier Hospital, Sutton, Sutton Council, Tim Crowley, Tom Drummond
|
1 Comment
LibDems rocked by councillor attack on Sutton leader Lewis
INSIDE SUTTON: With local elections just weeks away, the ruling group on the council has been shocked by a devastating resignation statement, including allegations of racism, ‘deception, deceit and duplicitous behaviour’. Our Civic Centre correspondent, ROSE HILL, reports In an … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in 2026 council elections, Barry Lewis, David Campanale, Jayne McCoy, Luke Taylor MP, Nick Mattey, Ruth Dombey, Sutton and Cheam, Sutton Council, Tom Drummond
|
Tagged 'Basher' Lewis, Barry Lewis, Conservative, Jayne McCoy, Leafleting cult, Liberal Democrats, Luke Taylor MP, Nick Mattey, Patrick Ogbonna, Sutton, Sutton Council, Tom Drummond
|
Leave a comment
The full text of Cllr Patrick Ogbonna’s resignation email
INSIDE SUTTON: Here’s the full text of Patrick Ogbonna’s email to all councillors, sent this morning, with ‘BREAKING NEWS: Standing Down… but Rising Up!’ in the subject field Morning, members. Re: the above, I recently met with the so called … Continue reading →
Share this:
EA set to allow Viridor to burn more toxic waste at Beddington
Sutton Council is accused of ‘hoisting the white flag’ after latest acidic air emissions, as a multi-billion American-owned business seems set to be allowed to pump even more pollution into the south London atmosphere. EXCLUSIVE By STEVEN DOWNES Local councillors … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Bobby Dean, Broad Green, Business, Environment, Kingston, London-wide issues, Merton, Nick Mattey, Refuse collection, Steve Reed MP, Sutton Council, Tim Foster, Waddon, Waste incinerator
|
Tagged Air pollution, America, Barry 'Basher' Lewis, Broad Green, Conservative, Croydon Council, DEFRA, Department of Environment Farming and Rural Affairs, Donald Trump, Environment Agency, Infant mortality, Jason Perry, Jim Duffy, Kingston Council, Labour, London, Merton Council, Nick Mattey, Selhurst, SLWP, South London Waste Partnership, Steve Reed OBE, Sutton Council, Tim Foster, Tony Newman, Tory, United States, Viridor, Waddon
|
9 Comments
The questions Sutton leader won’t answer about Throwley Yard
INSIDE SUTTON: A week after the last picture show at the council-subsidised cinema, why is Councillor Barry ‘Basher’ Lewis dodging serious matters of genuine public interest? By CARL SHILTON Throwley Yard Cinema in central Sutton staged its very own “Last … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Bexley, Business, Cinema, Lewisham, Outside Croydon, Really Local Group, Sutton Council, Throwley Yard Cinema
|
Tagged Barry 'Basher' Lewis, Barry Lewis, Catford, Future High Street Fund, Lewisham, Liberal Democrats, London, Preston Benson, Really Local Group, Sidcup, Sutton, Sutton Council, Throwley Yard Cinema
|
1 Comment
Throwley Yard to close as company goes into administration
INSIDE SUTTON: A cinema which opened little more than a year ago using millions of pounds of public money is forced to shut from Sunday, leaving the council with little, if any, income from the venue. Our investigations editor, CARL … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Bexley, Business, Cinema, Lewisham, Outside Croydon, Really Local Group, Sutton Council, Throwley Yard Cinema
|
Tagged Barry 'Basher' Lewis, Barry Lewis, Catford, Future High Street Fund, Lewisham, Liberal Democrats, London, Preston Benson, Really Local Group, Sidcup, Sutton, Sutton Council, Throwley Yard Cinema
|
6 Comments
Mum returns to Sutton to launch memoir with charity’s friends
Sutton Library staged a book launch this week where Get on Downs, a parent-led charity, hosts weekly coffee and cake meetings every Wednesday for families with children with Down’s syndrome. Liz Arriens-Troy’s memoir, Everybody Wants a Dance With Coraline, is … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Activities, Barry Lewis, Health, Sutton Council
|
Tagged Everybody Wants a Dance With Coraline, Liz Arriens-Troy, Sutton, Sutton Library
|
Leave a comment
Polluting Viridor exposed over nearly 1,000 licence breaches
There must be an election coming, as the LibDems in Sutton finally wake up to the ‘environmental disaster’ that they have inflicted on Beddington, and Croydon, as our investigations editor, CARL SHILTON, reports Twelve years too late, Sutton’s FibDems have … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Business, Christopher Woolmer, Croydon Council, Environment, Kingston, Merton, Nick Mattey, Spencer Palmer, Sutton Council, Waste incinerator
|
Tagged Barry 'Basher' Lewis, Beddington, Beddington incinerator, Beddington Lane, Beddington Lane incinerator, Christopher Woolmer, Croydon, Croydon Council, Dave Tchil, Dave Tchiligirian, DEFRA, Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, EA, Environment Agency, Kingston Council, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Merton Council, Nick Mattey, Pollution, Steve Reed OBE, Sutton Council, Viridor, Viridor incinerator
|
8 Comments
Moonlighting MPs spend their time helping out Basher Lewis
INSIDE SUTTON: The conflicting demands of being constituency MPs and ward councillors are beginning to take a toll, reports ROSE HILL Residents in Sutton are beginning to ask whether the borough’s two recently elected MPs are serving the public interest, … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in 2026 council elections, Barry Lewis, Bobby Dean, Carshalton and Wallington, Luke Taylor MP, Sutton and Cheam, Sutton Council
|
Tagged Barry 'Basher' Lewis, Bobby Dean MP, Carshalton and Wallington, Conservative, Liberal Democrats, Luke Taylor MP, Sutton and Cheam, Sutton Council, Tory
|
Leave a comment
Opposition livid as cynical LibDems prompt second by-election
INSIDE SUTTON: Another absentee LibDem councillor has quit, running up costs of an estimated £25,000 for Council Tax-payers Council by-elections in Sutton are getting to be a bit like buses: no sooner has one come along, than another is announced. … Continue reading →
Share this:
LibDem Choi holds Sutton Central council seat with 56% of vote
INSIDE SUTTON: Liberal Democrats hail a ‘great result’ in council by-election, as Labour crash from second to fourth, beaten by Reform Choi Ka Yuen, sometimes known as Richard Choi, is Sutton’s newest councillor, the Liberal Democrat holding the Sutton Central … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in 2026 council elections, Barry Lewis, Sutton Council
|
Tagged Barry Lewis, By-election, Choi Ka Yuen, Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Richard Choi, SDEN, Sutton, Sutton Central, Sutton Council, Tory
|
1 Comment
‘Suez-gate’: LibDems withhold video ahead of ward by-election
INSIDE SUTTON: Mystery surrounds another missing tape of an important council meeting – coincidentally just as a council by-election is taking place. EXCLUSIVE by BELLE MONT, Political Editor The Liberal Democrats in Sutton have been accused of suppressing an official … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Helen Bailey, Jayne McCoy, Nick Mattey, Ruth Dombey, Sutton Council, Tim Foster
|
Tagged Barry Lewis, By-election, Choi Ka Yuen, Conservative, David Bartolucci, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Pamela Marsh, Richard Choi, SDEN, Señor Sheldon Vestey, Sheldon Vestey, Sutton, Sutton Central, Sutton Council, Tory
|
2 Comments
Resident to challenge LibDems in Sutton council by-election
INSIDE SUTTON: April 10 has been set as polling day, with the all-powerful Liberal Democrats picking a leader of the local Hong Kong community as their candidate to replace their absentee former deputy leader. EXCLUSIVE by BELLE MONT, Political Editor … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Nick Mattey, Ruth Dombey, Sutton Council, Tim Foster
|
Tagged Barry Lewis, Beech Tree Place, By-election, Conservative, David Bartolucci, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Pamela Marsh, Richard Choi, SDEN, Señor Sheldon Vestey, Sheldon Vestey, Sutton, Sutton Central, Sutton Council, Tory
|
Leave a comment
LibDems’ sacked deputy storms out of meeting, and council
INSIDE SUTTON: A council by-election in Sutton Central ward is imminent, following a six-month period when the area’s Liberal Democrat councillor failed to turn up for a single meeting. EXCLUSIVE by BELLE MONT, Political Editor Less than 12 months ago, … Continue reading →
Share this:
Sutton Council plans £400 payment hikes for disabled and poor
INSIDE SUTTON: Poor and disabled residents will be forced to pay Council Tax to help the Liberal Democrat-run council balance its budget. EXCLUSIVE by DAVE BURTON A meeting at Sutton Civic Centre tonight will make the first moves towards rubber … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Council Tax, London Assembly, London-wide issues, Mayor of London, Sutton Council
|
Tagged Barry Lewis, Conservative, Council Tax, Dave Burton, Jane Pascoe, Liberal Democrats, London, Mayor, Tory
|
Leave a comment
Throwley Yard Cinema under scrutiny as companies collapse
INSIDE SUTTON: Four sister companies of the firm behind Sutton’s council-backed cinema have gone out of business in quick succession. BERTIE WORCESTER-PARK does what he heard them say in the movies, and follows the money… Though it claims it is … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Bexley, Business, Cinema, Lewisham, Outside Croydon, Really Local Group, Richard Simpson, Ruth Dombey, Sutton Council, Throwley Yard Cinema
|
Tagged Barry 'Basher' Lewis, Barry Lewis, Catford, Future High Street Fund, Lewisham, Liberal Democrats, London, Preston Benson, Really Local Group, Sidcup, Sutton, Sutton Council, Throwley Yard Cinema
|
4 Comments
Council Tax proposal to hit Sutton’s disabled and unemployed
Sutton Council is set to introduce measures which will force some of the poorest in the borough, including the disabled and unemployed, to pay Council Tax for the first time. It is an effort by the Liberal Democrat-controlled council under … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Adult Social Care, Barry Lewis, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Katherine Kerswell, London Fire Brigade, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Mayor of London, Outside Croydon, Policing, Sadiq Khan, Sutton Council
|
Tagged Barry 'Basher' Lewis, Conservative, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, GLA, Greater London Authority, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Liberal Democrats, London, London Assembly, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor, Mayor Jason Perry, Metropolitan Police, Rachel Reeves, Sadiq Khan, Sir Sadiq Khan, Sutton Council, Tory
|
3 Comments
In Sutton, Mary Poppins better look out when Kingdom comes
EXCLUSIVE: ‘Environment’ officials stopped a bus to issue a penalty notice to an old man for dropping a fag end, when the man is a non-smoker. Among a growing number of complaints include an old lady fined £150 for harmlessly … Continue reading →
Share this:
MP hands Westminster job to councillor who donated £3,000
It’s ‘jobs for the boy’ in Sutton, as new LibDem MP Taylor is accused of a stitch-up over the recruitment to a tax-payer-funded staff positon of a chum who made a £3,000 donation to his election campaign. By CARL SHILTON, … Continue reading →
Share this:
Now ‘Basher’ Lewis knocks out debate on polluting incinerator
The Viridor waste incinerator at Beddington Lane has broken the terms of its operating licence 60 times. But Sutton’s LibDems refuse to discuss the matter, as BERTIE WOOSTER-PARK reports Barry “Basher” Lewis, the leader of Liberal Democrat-run Sutton, this week … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Bobby Dean, Carshalton and Wallington, Environment, Helen Bailey, Luke Taylor MP, Nick Mattey, Sheldon Vestey, Sutton and Cheam, Sutton Council, Tom Drummond, Waste incinerator
|
Tagged Air pollution, Barry 'Basher' Lewis, Barry Lewis, Beddington, Beddington incinerator, Bobby Dean MP, Carshalton and Wallington, Colin Stears, Conservative, Dave Tchil, Environment Agency, Helen Lewis, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Luke Taylor MP, Nick Mattey, Sutton, Sutton and Cheam, Sutton Council, Tim Martin, Tory, Toxic air pollution, Viridor
|
4 Comments
Sutton council leader denies punching colleague at meeting
EXCLUSIVE: Allegations of bias and cover-up have followed a bit of a dust-up at a local committee meeting last month Six months ago, when he was elected as leader of Sutton Council, Barry Lewis was derided as a bit of … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Nick Mattey, Sutton Council
|
Tagged 'Basher' Lewis, Barry Lewis, Beddington, Biggles Lewis, Conservative, Liberal Democrats, Monitoring Officer, Nick Mattey, Patrick Magnus, Sutton, Sutton Council, Tim Martin, Tory
|
1 Comment
Two-year search to replace Veolia hands £40m deal to… Veolia
CROYDON IN CRISIS: You could not make this up. After four south London councils sacked their waste contractors for poor service, and hundreds of thousands of pounds were spent on a procurement process, Croydon is about to follow Sutton in … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Business, Croydon Council, Croydon East, Environment, Fly tipping, Kingston, Merton, Natasha Irons, Nick Hibberd, Refuse collection, Sutton Council, Veolia, Waste incinerator
|
Tagged #Binmageddon, #MuckyMerton, #SuttonBinShame, Croydon, Croydon Council, Kingston, Kingston Council, Labour, Merton, Merton Council, SLWP, South London Waste Partnership, Sutton, Sutton Council, Veolia
|
9 Comments
7 councils ask Streeting to call-in children’s cancer decision
Croydon has joined with six other local authorities from across south London and Surrey to issue a plea to the new Labour government’s health secretary to call-in plans to move children’s cancer care from The Royal Marsden Hospital at Belmont … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Croydon Council, Health, Kingston, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Merton, Surrey, Sutton Council, Uncategorized, Wandsworth Council
|
Tagged Barry Lewis, Belmont, Cancer, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Evelina Children's Hospital, Kingston Council, Labour, Liberal Democrats, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Merton Council, NHS, NHS London, Richmond Council, Royal Marsden Hospital, St George's Hospital, Surrey County Council, Sutton Council, Tooting, Tory, Wandsworth Council, Wes Streeting
|
2 Comments
‘Biggles’ hits turbulence from first day as Sutton council leader
BELLE MONT, Inside Sutton’s answer to Laura Kuenssberg (but with fewer scruples), sat through last night’s ‘mayor-making’ ceremonials so that you didn’t have to, and reports simmering problems for the new council leader and a huge step backwards for Labour … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Bobby Dean, Luke Taylor MP, Ruth Dombey, Sheldon Vestey, Sutton Council, Tom Drummond
|
Tagged Barry Lewis, Beech Tree Place, Conservative, David Bartolucci, David Campanale, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Luke Taylor, Ruth Dombey, Sheila Berry, Sheldon Vestey, St Helier West, Sutton, Sutton and Cheam, Sutton Council, Tom Drummond, Tory
|
Leave a comment
LibDems pick failed businessman Biggles as new Sutton leader
Failed businessman Barry “Biggles” Lewis is to be the next leader of Sutton Council, the borough’s Liberal Democrats announced yesterday. Lewis is to replace Ruth Dombey, who is standing down as Sutton’s LibDem leader in May after 12 years in … Continue reading →
Share this:
Posted in Barry Lewis, Business, Environment, Ruth Dombey, Sutton Council, Waste incinerator
|
Tagged Barry Lewis, Liberal Democrats, Ruth Dombey, Sutton Council, Wallington North
|
1 Comment
