MP Jones ‘shocked’ by Perry’s ‘unacceptable’ 15% tax hike

Posted on February 8, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: ‘Residents simply cannot afford this Council Tax rise’ says Labour parliamentary front-bencher. By STEVEN DOWNES

Shocked: MP Sarah Jones has condemned the Conservative government and Tory Mayor’s move to hike Council Tax by 15%

Sarah Jones, the Labour MP for Croydon Central, has spoken out against the 15per cent Council Tax increase which the Tory Mayor, Jason Perry, is imposing on the borough’s residents from April, calling it “unacceptable” to heap such a massive additional financial burden during the Conservative cost-of-living crisis.

As first reported by Inside Croydon earlier this week, Mayor Perry requested government permission to go ahead with the 15per cent Council Tax hike without the need for a local referendum. The Conservative government minister, Michael Gove, announced on Monday that Mayor Perry had got his wish.

Under Perry’s plans, residents living in a typical Band D Croydon home will have an extra £234 added to their annual Council Tax bill from April. On top of that, there will also be an extra £38 for the Mayor of London’s precept, to pay for the Met Police and London Fire Brigade, which combined will make Croydon Council Tax bills among the biggest in the whole of the capital.

According to MP Jones, this is not the time to raise taxes by so much. Continue reading →

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Central, Croydon Council, Mayor Jason Perry, Sarah Jones MP | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

It cannot be fair to hike Council Tax and not deliver services

Posted on February 8, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON COMMENTARY: They say that the true test of leadership is how well you function in a crisis. But in imposing a 15% Council Tax hike, Mayor Jason Perry could have made the cost-of-living crisis much worse for thousands of residents, writes PETER UNDERWOOD

Can’t Pay, Won’t Pay: the Poll Tax demos in the early 1990s brought down Thatcher as PM. Jason Perry’s 15% tax hike could damage his mayoralty in a similar way

Jason Perry, the Mayor of Croydon, is planning to raise Council Tax by 15per cent from April – in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis. This is causing a lot of anger and anxiety.

But what can be done?

As the famous quote says, “’tis impossible to be sure of anything but Death and Taxes”. We may disagree on how much taxes people should pay and what public services should be provided, but we all know that our taxes are needed to help pay for public services.

While we accept that taxes are inevitable, one thing that does make us all angry, rightly, is when taxes are seen to be unfair. The Poll Tax protests in the early 1990s weren’t complaining that we all had to pay tax; people were furious about the unfair system used to collect them. Continue reading →

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Croydon Greens, Mayor Jason Perry, Peter Underwood | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Getting a rubbish service from the council? Call for the Cubs!

Posted on February 8, 2023 by insidecroydon

Our Town Hall reporter, KEN LEE, on the latest crass error of judgement from the propaganda bunker at Fisher’s Folly

Rubbish councillor: Tory Mario Creatura, elected to represent the people of Coulsdon, has been clearing up rubbish in… [checks notes]… Reigate

As if to underline the assessment that Croydon’s council is dysfunctional, the first press release issued from the propaganda bunker at Fisher’s Folly yesterday, after the announcement from Mayor Jason Perry that he is hiking the borough’s Council Tax by 15per cent, was a cheery little story of how one of the services the public is already paying for is actually being performed to some degree by volunteers.

Or maybe this is Tory Mayor Perry’s council cynically rubbing people’s noses in it that they are all paying more and getting less. Much, much less.

The time has long passed when describing Veolia as a rubbish contractor was a bit of a giggle. It’s plain that the state of the borough’s pavements, streets and open spaces have been neglected for far too long – a period that can be traced back to when Perry was a mere member of the cabinet for planning and regeneration in the previous Conservative administration. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Community associations, Coulsdon, Croydon Council, Fly tipping, Mario Creatura, Mayor Jason Perry, Refuse collection, Scouts and Guides, Steve Iles, Veolia | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Coulsdon’s Tudor Rose re-opening puts offers on a plate

Posted on February 8, 2023 by insidecroydon

Bucking the trend for pubs closing, the Tudor Rose in Coulsdon is to re-open later this month after undergoing a plush makeover which its owners say gives it “a modernised, stylish and contemporary feel”.

Modernised and plush: The Tudor Rose in Coulsdon has undergone an extensive refurb and re-opens on Feb 25

“We can’t wait to welcome guests to show off the new look pub… it’s stunning!” said Vikki Wilson, the general manager.

“At The Tudor Rose, we have a wonderfully attentive team who are all eagerly waiting to welcome customers back to the pub.

“The Tudor Rose has had a complete transformation, and we’re sure that regulars and new guests alike will be thoroughly impressed.”

The Tudor Rose is on Coulsdon Road, not far from Grange Park. It is expected to reopen on February 25. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Coulsdon, Pubs | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Buddy Holly Tribute Night, Ruskin House, Feb 11

Posted on February 8, 2023 by insidecroydon

Continue reading →

Posted in Music, Ruskin House | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Mark Hummel at The Oval Tavern, East Croydon, Feb 11

Posted on February 8, 2023 by insidecroydon

Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe West, Music, Pubs | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Get started with Ratio Apps software development agency

Posted on February 8, 2023 by insidecroydon

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

Continue reading →

Posted in Advertisement, Business | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Croydon’s 15% Council Tax hike: now is the time for action

Posted on February 7, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: In the past day, there’s been an overwhelming angry rejection of the idea that ordinary, hard-working families in this borough should pay even more for the mistakes and incompetence of council officials and politicians. Which is why Inside Croydon is backing not one, but two petitions. By STEVEN DOWNES, Editor

Hoping not to sound too much like Peter Finch in the Oscar-winning movie Network, but the people of Croydon have had enough and we ain’t gonna take any more…

The public’s response has been an overwhelming rejection of the stitch-up between Croydon Mayor Jason Perry and the Levelling Up secretary, Michael Gove, to impose a 15per cent Council Tax hike on the borough’s residents, in the middle of a dire cost of living crisis.

So what do we do about it? Continue reading →

Posted in Community associations, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Inside Croydon, Local media, Mayor Jason Perry | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Public’s furious reaction to Perry’s Premium Council Tax hike

Posted on February 7, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: ‘Go climb in a skip. No one’s paying that’. Residents’ outrage at Council Tax hike sees demos and petitions planned

In the 24 hours since Inside Croydon broke the news of Croydon Mayor Jason Perry’s request to increase Council Tax by 15per cent from April, there has been widespread shock and anger, even fury, vented by residents from across the borough.

Not least from members of the residents’ associations in the south of the borough, who were among those who campaigned hard to bring in the mayoral system, and many of whom now feel betrayed by the part-time Mayor.

“He said he had a plan to fix the council’s finances when he was campaigning for our vote,” one Purley resident said today. “But he never told us that plan was to fleece the very residents who have already suffered all the cuts in services because of the way the council has been mismanaged.” Continue reading →

Posted in Claire Bonham, Community associations, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Mayor Jason Perry, Peter Underwood, Stuart King | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

The Perry Premium: Mayor fails to disclose he asked for 15%

Posted on February 7, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Of three basket-case boroughs, it was only Croydon that requested a special Council Tax hike, as Jason Perry breaks his silence

It took Jason Perry more than two hours to get around to issuing a public statement, after Inside Croydon broke the news yesterday that Croydon’s part-time Mayor had asked the government for permission to increase Council Tax from April by 15per cent.

A written statement to Parliament earlier in the afternoon, from levelling up secretary Michael Gove, had emphasised that he was allowing Croydon to lift the Council Tax cap without the need for a referendum because of “exceptional circumstances” and “unprecedented financial deficit”.

“The government has decided not to oppose the requests,” Gove said. Basket case councils Thurrock (£469million debt) and Slough (£760million debt) had requested 10per cent Council Tax increases; only Croydon had asked for a “Perry Premium” of 15per cent.

Continue reading →

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Fanning the flames – Brigade deals with Penge bedsit blaze

Posted on February 7, 2023 by insidecroydon

Firefighters yesterday tackled a flat fire on Laurel Grove in Penge which is believed to have been caused by using an electrical appliance on a bed.

On call: fire engines from three stations dealt with the blaze in Penge

No one was seriously hurt, but a man was taken to hospital by London Ambulance Service crews after suffering from smoke inhalation after he was rescued by firefighters wearing breathing apparatus.

Half of a bedsit on the ground floor of a three-storey residential building was damaged by the fire, which is being treated as accidental and involved a table fan placed on the bed. Continue reading →

Posted in London Fire Brigade | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Cougars’ half-term basketball camp, Monks Hill, Feb 13-17

Posted on February 7, 2023 by insidecroydon

Continue reading →

Posted in Activities, Education, Sport | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

TEDx Croydon – Education, Royal Russell School, Feb 18

Posted on February 7, 2023 by insidecroydon

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

Continue reading →

Posted in Advertisement, Education, Inside Croydon | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Gove to Perry: ‘Mitigate the impact on those least able to pay’

Posted on February 6, 2023 by insidecroydon

By STEVEN DOWNES

Mayor Jason Perry’s plans to raise a few bob extra by taking cash out of the purses of old age pensioners and the poorest in the borough got defeated in a Town Hall vote last week.

Today, after being given permission for an inflation-busting 15per cent hike in Council Tax from April, he was told in no uncertain terms that he must find a way of maintaining Council Tax Support for the most vulnerable in the borough.

Perry’s message came from Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, in a written statement to Parliament. Continue reading →

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Perry to preside over record-breaking 15% Council Tax hike

Posted on February 6, 2023 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: The borough with one of the biggest Council Tax bills in London has just been given permission to make those bills even bigger. Much bigger. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES

Croydon, under Tory Mayor Jason Perry, has been given permission by the Tory government to raise Council Tax by an inflation-busting 15per cent from April, as the borough’s long-suffering residents are once again being expected to pay for the failures of their politicians.

Katharine Street sources suggest that because Mayor Perry issued his pre-emptive Section 114 notice in November, saying that he would not be able to balance the council’s budget for 2023-2024, Croydon will now have no alternative but to impose one of the biggest Council Tax hikes seen in this country for more than 40 years.

Councils in Thurrock and Slough, also on government minister Michael Gove’s “naughty step” for not managing their finances well enough, are being allowed to increase their Council Tax from April by a “mere” 10per cent. Continue reading →

Posted in Adult Social Care, Brick by Brick, Children's Services, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Tony McArdle | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Lucky reader wins tickets for a gala concert at Fairfield Halls

Posted on February 6, 2023 by insidecroydon

Congratulations to loyal Inside Croydon patron Lewis White, the lucky winner of a pair of tickets to a gala concert by the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra at the Fairfield Halls later this month.

The concert is the first in a 2023 series of international music excellence, part of the orchestra’s UK tour to celebrate the 120th anniversary of renowned Armenian composer, Aram Khachaturian. Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Fairfield Halls, Inside Croydon, Jonathan Higgins, Music | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Help precious pollinators by getting your own Bee Saver Kit

Posted on February 6, 2023 by insidecroydon

There are unprecedented challenges facing the world, but our fragile food system would be put under even more strain if we lose our bees.

Put a bit of buzz into your garden: bees need all the help they can get

Bees pollinate 75per cent of our main food crops worldwide, but right now they are dying out fast.

Of Britain’s 26 bumblebee species, two are extinct and another eight are under threat, having suffered major declines.

A major reason for this is the loss of their natural habitat. They’ve lost 97per cent of wildflower meadows in the past 70 years. But disaster can be averted.

Even now, people are working together to help create bee-friendly spaces all over the country – and you can too. Continue reading →

Posted in Charity, Community associations, Croydon Friends of the Earth, Environment, Gardening, Wildlife | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Baron Barwell does a bunk from Lords after Standards breach

Posted on February 6, 2023 by insidecroydon

More Tory sleaze, after a complaint from an iC reader leads to a finding that the politician broke the rules over his business declarations… and his Lordship isn’t saying whether his ‘leave of absence’ is in connection with something far more serious. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES

Long arm of the law: gaffe-prone Gav got off with another ticking off over his conduct

“Lord” Gavin Barwell, the former Chief of Staff to Theresa May when she was Prime Minister, has taken indefinite leave of absence from the House of Lords, just as he has been found in breach of the House’s code of conduct for not registering clients to his personal consultancy business.

The investigation into Lord Barwell’s conduct came after a complaint was filed in November last year by Anthony Miller, an Inside Croydon reader, who told this website, “I found it odd that one can find out more from Lord Gavin’s Twitter feed about who he works for than you can from the Lords Register of Members interests.”

Barwell was the Tory MP for Croydon Central from 2010 until 2017. He was ennobled in Theresa May’s resignation honours in 2019 as Baron Barwell, of Croydon in the London Borough of Croydon. Which is nice. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Croydon Central, Gavin Barwell | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Croydon High ‘shocked’ at death of former head at Epsom

Posted on February 6, 2023 by insidecroydon

Tragedy: Emma Pattison, her husband George and daughter Lottie were found dead yesterday

Emma Pattison, the headteacher at Epsom College who was discovered dead with her husband and daughter yesterday, had joined the private school in 2022 after six years as head at Croydon High School in Selsdon.

Pattison, 45, her husband George, 39, and their daughter Lettie, 7, were found dead in a property in the grounds of Epsom College in the early hours of Sunday.

In a statement last night, Surrey Police said they were confident there was “no third-party involvement”. Continue reading →

Posted in Crime, Croydon High, Education, Schools, Surrey | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

When Minster was the venue for an Anglo-Saxon peace treaty

Posted on February 5, 2023 by insidecroydon

SUNDAY SUPPLEMENT: A recent discovery of coins suggests that the date of the foundation of Croydon as a strategic location between London and Canterbury was more than 150 years earlier than historians had previously suggested, writes DAVID MORGAN

Golden history: this coin, with the head of Coenwulf, provides a link to Croydon going back more than a thousand years

It took an intervention from a friend who is a numismatist to further extend my knowledge of the history of Croydon Minster.

“Have you ever seen these coins before?” he asked, showing me a picture of two coins, one gold, one silver.

“You want to look carefully at them because the two people whose portraits are on the coins came to Croydon Minster. The gold coin has the head of Coenwulf on it, the King of Mercia, and the silver one has the head of Archbishop Wulfred, the Archbishop of Canterbury.

“An Anglo-Saxon charter which was signed by both these men was drawn up ‘iuxta monasterium quod dicitur Crogedena’… translated that means next to the Minster in Croydon.”

So I was left to follow up these revelations. Continue reading →

Posted in Church and religions, Croydon Minster, David Morgan, History | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Welcome to Croydon! And a town centre designed by Minecraft

Posted on February 5, 2023 by insidecroydon

Spot the difference: Croydon town centre, as designed by Minecraft… or not

KEN TOWL on the latest cheap publicity stunt that seeks to patronise the borough’s youth and encourage them to sign up for an addictive video game, rather than to study design or architecture

The first thing to point out is that today is not April 1.

You know that feeling you get when you read a news article and it sounds barely credible and a little voice tells you “Look at the date!” and you have that Aha! Moment and you feel good because you can spot nonsense when you see it?

Well, that’s how I felt when I read one of Croydon Council’s press releases issued this week. Except it isn’t April 1, so what I read is either a deliberate lie or the truth. And I am not sure which of those would be worse.

Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Education, Environment, Housing, Jules Pipe, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Croydon’s Jazz Café, Clocktower on Thursdays from noon

Posted on February 5, 2023 by insidecroydon

Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Perry starts back-pedalling over borough’s low traffic schemes

Posted on February 4, 2023 by insidecroydon

Less than six months into what was supposed to be a properly monitored 18-month trial of traffic-reducing measures, the council has announced a series of ‘drop-in sessions’ for residents to air their views on CHNs.
By PAUL LUSHION, environment correspondent

Signs of the times: the Dalmally Road CHN, where access is restricted to only permitted vehicles

Jason Perry, Croydon’s pro-pollution, anti-cycling Tory Mayor, could be preparing to roll back the borough’s Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, schemes which have been introduced since 2020 as a response to covid to encourage walking and cycling, and to reduce rat-running by speeding cars through residential streets.

Pandering to the road haulage and motoring lobby during last year’s election campaign, Tory Perry said, “These LTN schemes have increased levels of traffic and congestion, increased journey times, increased pollution, impacted on business and fined residents for driving on their own roads… These schemes are having a huge detrimental impact on our communities.”

But Perry stopped short of getting the schemes uprooted on Day One of his Mayoralty, citing the £10million to £15million per year forecast in revenue for the cash-strapped council from fines from motorists for driving without permits through the LTNs or school streets. Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe West, Broad Green, Croydon Council, Cycling, Environment, Mayor Jason Perry, South Croydon, South Norwood, TfL, Transport, ULEZ, ULEZ expansion | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Week of events for apprentices to get their Skills for Life

Posted on February 4, 2023 by insidecroydon

Residents and employers with questions about apprenticeships can get all the information they need at upcoming events during National Apprenticeship Week, which runs from February 6 to 12.

The opportunities and benefits of apprenticeships for individuals, businesses and communities, and a showcase of the wide-ranging options available in the borough will be covered at sessions throughout the week.

Roles in sectors including finance, law, education and hospitality are available in Croydon and local employers and apprentices will be telling their stories of how apprenticeships have worked for them.

Continue reading →

Posted in Activities, Business, CALAT, Croydon College, Croydon Council, Education, LSBU campus | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Get Work Ready 6-week course, Selhurst Park, from Feb 23

Posted on February 4, 2023 by insidecroydon

 

Continue reading →

Posted in Activities, Business, Charity, Education | Tagged , , | Leave a comment