Category Archives: Tony Newman

Accountancy watchdog moves in on officials from Woking

After almost five years, not a single person in Croydon has ever been held responsible for their parts in the council’s financial collapse, the scandal of Brick by Brick or the Fairfield Halls refurbishment fiasco. But in Surrey, two former … Continue reading →

Posted in Brick by Brick, Business, Colm Lacey, Crime, Croydon Council, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Report in the Public Interest, Richard Simpson, RIPI II: Fairfield Halls, Section 114 notice, Shifa Mustafa, Simon Hall, The Penn Report, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

News black-out after Labour Party suspends Assembly Member

EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Unmesh Desai, the London Assembly Member for The City and East London, has been suspended by the Labour Party following what was initially reported as “a police investigation into a serious allegation”. A spokesperson for the … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime, London Assembly, London-wide issues, Mayor of London, Policing, Tony Newman, Unmesh Desai | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

MP Reed claims those who left borough broke ‘have now gone’

WALTER CRONXITE, political editor, checks the ‘facts’ where other local news outlets dare not look Steve Reed OBE, the MP who was Labour’s front bench spokesperson on local government at the time that the council for the area he is … Continue reading →

Posted in Alisa Flemming, Alison Butler, Brick by Brick, Callton Young, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Croydon North, David Evans, Environment, Fairfield Halls, Lambeth Council, Manju Shahul Hameed, Mayor Jason Perry, Paul Scott, Report in the Public Interest, RIPI II: Fairfield Halls, Sean Fitzsimons, Section 114 notice, Simon Hall, Steve Reed MP, Streatham and Croydon North, Stuart Collins, Stuart King, The Penn Report, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Lord Evans of Penge completes clique’s stranglehold of Labour

Political editor WALTER CRONXITE gives his crystal ball a polish after one of his easier predictions came to pass Friday’s announcement of another raft of political peerages was the latest move to consolidate a takeover of the Labour Party by … Continue reading →

Posted in David Evans, Lambeth Council, Steve Reed MP, Streatham and Croydon North, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Negrini doctored specialist reports and withheld finance details

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Investigators from Kroll never had investigatory powers to check people’s bank accounts in the search for possible fraud over the £73m refurbishment of the Fairfield Halls. But there was evidence in the public domain of ‘direct personal … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Butler, Brick by Brick, Business, College Green, Colm Lacey, Crime, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Mott MacDonald, Paul Scott, Report in the Public Interest, Richard Simpson, RIPI II: Fairfield Halls, Section 114 notice, Shifa Mustafa, The Penn Report, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Kroll Report provides no answers to £73m Fairfield fiasco

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Jo Negrini refused to be interviewed, all Colm Lacey’s emails got wiped and former cabinet members Newman, Scott, Butler and Hall were never spoken to in person as part of the £310,000 investigation. By STEVEN DOWNES Late … Continue reading →

Posted in Alisa Flemming, Alison Butler, Brick by Brick, Business, College Green, Colm Lacey, Crime, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Mott MacDonald, Paul Scott, Report in the Public Interest, Richard Simpson, RIPI II: Fairfield Halls, Section 114 notice, Shifa Mustafa, The Penn Report, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Manchester Mayor can’t provide answers to Croydon problems

WALTER CRONXITE, political editor, on the early start to the 2026 local election campaign Croydon’s 2026 mayoral election campaign is well and truly underway – and the Labour Party has not even started its candidate selection process yet. In a … Continue reading →

Posted in 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Brick by Brick, Callton Young, Council Tax, Croydon Council, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Mayor of London, Rowenna Davis, Section 114 notice, Stuart King, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Davis quits scrutiny to be Labour pick as mayor candidate

EXCLUSIVE: Labour councillor for Waddon ward stands down from council committee role, with 2026 local elections as a target. By STEVEN DOWNES The starting gun on the campaign for election as Croydon Mayor in 2026 was fired this afternoon, as … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Mayor Jason Perry, Rowenna Davis, Tony Newman, Waddon | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Labour Party chief’s consultancy business is in deep trouble

EXCLUSIVE: Might the failure of David Evans’s Croydon-based business offer some clues to the effectiveness, or otherwise, of his time running the party machine for Keir Starmer? By our political editor, WALTER CRONXITE Whatever might be planned by David Evans … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Butler, Croydon Council, David Evans, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Grumbled recriminations but little is changed at the Town Hall

Fuelled by a double espresso and a Count Binface discounted croissant, political editor WALTER CRONXITE reports from ExCel on the outcome of a couple of Croydon sideshows As news seeped out from ExCel last night of the two Croydon sideshows … Continue reading →

Posted in 2024 London elections, Andrew Price, Jade Appleton, Jess Hammersley-Rich, Mike Bonello, Park Hill and Whitgift, Tony Newman, Woodside | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Labour refuses to deny suspensions over Croydon East ‘fix’

LABOUR SELECTION SCANDAL: The interim chair of a new CLP will not be presiding over an important meeting to be held next month, members have been informed, as the party is accused of vote-rigging ‘on an industrial scale’.  EXCLUSIVE by … Continue reading →

Posted in 2024 General Election, 2024 London elections, Carole Bonner, Croydon East, David Evans, Maddie Henson, Simon Hall, Tony Newman, Woodside | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Farewell but no thanks: troubleshooters leave BxB’s board

Step by tiny step, the winding up of failed developer Brick by Brick is coming to an end, reports BARRATT HOLMES, housing correspondent The deckchairs are being re-arranged on the deck of Brick by Brick, seemingly for one final time. … Continue reading →

Posted in Brick by Brick, Business, Colm Lacey, Coulsdon, Croydon Council, David Courcoux, Jo Negrini, Report in the Public Interest, RIPI II: Fairfield Halls, Section 114 notice, Simon Hall, The Penn Report, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Hellraiser on the ballot paper for Woodside ward by-election

The Greens are bringing a Hellraiser to the council by-elections being held next month. Nicholas Burman-Vince, the actor who played Chatterer Cenobite in Clive Barker’s cult Hellraiser movies, is the Green Party’s candidate for Woodside in the by-election being held … Continue reading →

Posted in 2024 London elections, Andrew Pelling, Andrew Price, Croydon Council, Croydon Greens, Jess Hammersley-Rich, Mike Bonello, Park Hill and Whitgift, Tony Newman, Woodside | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Muslim charity founder to stand in Woodside for the LibDems

The Liberal Democrats’ hopes of doubling their number of councillors in Croydon rest on the shoulders of Jahir Hussain, who has been named as their party’s candidate for the Woodside by-election being held on May 2. Hussain is the chief … Continue reading →

Posted in Mike Bonello, Paul Scott, Tony Newman, Woodside | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

A bit Rich: members bypassed as Labour imposes candidate

The increasingly dysfunctional Croydon Labour Party yesterday tweeted that Purley resident Jess Hammersley-Rich is to be their candidate in the forthcoming Woodside ward council by-election. The social media announcement was the first that grassroots members in Woodside heard about the … Continue reading →

Posted in Carole Bonner, Croydon East, Jess Hammersley-Rich, Mike Bonello, Paul Scott, Tony Newman, Woodside | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Labour officials to hand-pick council candidate for Woodside

Croydon Labour members had barely got their breath back last night after the express declaration of Mrs Anonyvoter – Maddie Henson – as the party’s candidate for the London elections, than some were dealing with another blow to their solar … Continue reading →

Posted in Maddie Henson, Paul Scott, Tony Newman, Woodside | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

£68m: final cost of Brick by Brick, as agreed by Mayor Perry

£68m This is what a “solvent liquidation” looks like, according to Croydon’s elected Mayor Jason Perry. That’s the latest final estimate of the exit costs of winding down and closing Brick by Brick, the failed housing company set up by … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Butler, Brick by Brick, Business, Colm Lacey, Coulsdon, Croydon Council, Housing, Improvement Board, Jo Negrini, Mayor Jason Perry, Paul Scott, Planning, Simon Hall, Tony McArdle, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Labour’s NEC imposes selection shortlist on Croydon East

WALTER CRONXITE, political editor, on the latest twist in local Labour’s long-running psycho-drama The Labour Party underscored its anti-democratic approach to candidate selection last night when its national ruling body imposed its own shortlist for the new constituency of Croydon … Continue reading →

Posted in Carole Bonner, Croydon East, Simon Hall, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Dirty tricks or treats: Labour selection’s Halloween horror films

Whoever gets picked as Labour’s candidate for the new Croydon East parliamentary seat is effectively being installed to a job-for-life sinecure. And with such high stakes, some have already bent the rules and resorted to underhand tactics, reports our Political … Continue reading →

Posted in 2024 General Election, Chris Philp MP, Croydon East, Paul Scott, Sarah Jones MP, Steve Reed MP, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Tory Mayor Perry admits to another broken election promise

No more ‘rewards for failure’ was the Tory promise before last year’s local elections. Now the council’s executive Mayor has conceded that he cannot act against Newman, Negrini or others accused of bankrupting the borough. By our Town Hall reporter, … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Jo Negrini, Mayor Jason Perry, Report in the Public Interest, RIPI II: Fairfield Halls, Section 114 notice, Simon Hall, The Penn Report, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Mayor Perry has 48 hours to save Love Lane’s playground

Croydon’s first elected Mayor, Tory Jason Perry, is showing himself to be just as useless and unreliable as Labour’s discredited Tony Newman, one of his predecessors in the role as council leader. The failures of both third-rate politicians could now … Continue reading →

Posted in Community associations, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Gardening, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, South Norwood, Tony Newman, Woodside | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Stormzy’s football club parts with 2 managers after 5 games

Even Ken Bates or “Deadly” Doug Ellis, old-school football club owners notorious for sacking their managers with alacrity, never got rid of two at the same time. But that’s what international grime star Stormzy did this week, less than three … Continue reading →

Posted in AFC Croydon Athletic, Football, Paul Smith, Sport, Tony Newman, Wilfried Zaha | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Good Lord? Starmer’s gofer Evans is lined up for a peerage

Our political editor, WALTER CRONXITE, delves through some silly season speculation to discover that one of Alison Butler’s exes could soon be heading for the red benches David Evans, the former Croydon business owner who was an aide to Tony … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Butler, David Evans, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Hacker hacked? Labour councillor gets banned from Twitter

Social media platform takes action against Clive Fraser, one of the numptiest of Newman’s Numpties. By Town Hall reporter, KEN LEE Croydon’s laziest councillor, Clive Fraser, has had his Twitter account suspended. But as is his custom, “Lazy” Fraser has … Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe West, Clive Fraser, South Norwood, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Cost of failure: report says Negrini’s lined up new pay-off

Might Jo Negrini – “Negreedy” as she was less-than-fondly known by colleagues when she was chief executive at Croydon Council – be heading for a second overly generous pay-off in just three years? Next month will see the anniversary of … Continue reading →

Posted in Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Jo Negrini, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments