Tag Archives: Gavin Barwell

Businesses furious over Tory’s Christmas lights blame game

Posted on November 15, 2021 by insidecroydon

Our south of the borough correspondent, PEARL LEE,  on the latest controversy caused by Coulsdon’s most witless councillor Councillor Mario Creatura, the failed Conservative parliamentary candidate, has caused fury among local businesses and residents in the ward he is supposed … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Coulsdon, Coulsdon West, Mario Creatura | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Council governance is poor due to lack of competent cultures

Posted on September 30, 2021 by insidecroydon

REFERENDUM COUNTDOWN: Yesterday, we reported MP Steve Reed’s Labour Conference speech, where he made a strong case of devolving power – just not in his own constituency, where he has been arguing against a directly-elected mayor over the past few … Continue reading →

Posted in 2021 Mayor Referendum, Leila Ben-Hassel, Norbury | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

According to Barwell, Starmer cost Labour the 2019 election

Posted on September 13, 2021 by insidecroydon

WALTER CRONXITE, our political editor, got his hands dirty at the weekend, in an effort to save you the uncomfortable displeasure of reading The S*n, and to save you 20 quid For more than 30 years, families on Merseyside and … Continue reading →

Posted in 2019 General Election, Gavin Barwell | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Tenants’ despair and politicians’ disdain: Britain’s slum crisis

Posted on September 10, 2021 by insidecroydon

STEVEN DOWNES on the television documentary being broadcast on Sunday night which seems certain to shock the nation and pour shame on Croydon Council all over again You might think you couldn’t be shocked any more. But you’d be wrong. … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Hamida Ali, Housing, Lambeth Council, London-wide issues, Merton, Regina Road Residents' Support Group, South Norwood, Southwark Council | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Council concedes the end of its retail dream for town centre

Posted on August 16, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Do you feel ‘fortunate’ that the long-promised, council-backed scheme to regenerate the town centre has flopped? Because that’s the spin that Town Hall chiefs are putting on the collapse of the project and the end of a … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Business, Centrale, CPO, Croydon Council, Growth Zone, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, Oliver Lewis, Planning, Sarah Hayward, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Barwell and four ex-ministers summoned to Grenfell inquiry

Posted on June 3, 2021 by insidecroydon

Gavin Barwell, the former Conservative MP for Croydon Central, is one of five former government ministers who will be called to give evidence to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry in the autumn. “Lord” Barwell is to be summoned together with his … Continue reading →

Posted in Gavin Barwell, Housing | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Grenfell victims still waiting for Barwell’s inquiry summons

Posted on May 29, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON COMMENTARY:  The former Croydon Central MP this week backed calls for a public inquiry to be held urgently into the Conservative government’s mishandling of its response to the coronavirus pandemic. But as one loyal reader observes, ‘Lord’ Barwell has … Continue reading →

Posted in Gavin Barwell | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Barwell backs Cummings’ call for inquiry into covid response

Posted on May 27, 2021 by insidecroydon

Gavin “Lord” Barwell, the former Croydon MP and sometime Downing Street chief of staff, has waded into the row over yesterday’s explosive account of the government’s chaotic and ill-prepared response to covid-19 given to a Westminster committee by Dominic Cummings. … Continue reading →

Posted in Boris Johnson, Gavin Barwell, Health | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Leader’s office forced Labour mayors to pull out of meeting

Posted on May 21, 2021 by insidecroydon

Officials working for Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, backed by his party’s two Croydon MPs, pressured a pair of directly-elected mayors from other London boroughs to pull out of a public meeting held in Croydon last night. “We were lent … Continue reading →

Posted in 2021 Mayor Referendum, 2022 council elections, Alison Butler, Andrew Pelling, Community associations, David Evans, Jamie Audsley, Sarah Jones MP, Steve Reed MP, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

You’re caught in a trap: Barwell’s election advice to Labour

Posted on May 8, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON COMMENTARY: Recriminations over Thursday’s elections, in particular Labour’s loss of the Hartlepool parliamentary seat, will continue for some days yet as other results, including the London Assembly and council by-elections, trickle in. Here, former Tory MP GAVIN BARWELL, pictured, … Continue reading →

Posted in Gavin Barwell | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Lockdown shop closures will extend town centre’s blight

Posted on April 30, 2021 by insidecroydon

Our retailing correspondent MT WALLETTE reports that covid’s impact on the High Street leave little hope of Westfield’s long-promised redevelopment on North End any time soon One-tenth of shops in London are now vacant, according to the latest figures for … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Banned! Barwell blocks Inside Croydon from his little chat

Posted on March 31, 2021 by insidecroydon

In the week that the Grenfell fire inquiry resumed, the former minister who failed to act on multiple warnings about the dangers around tower blocks is staging a cosy little fund-raiser all about his ‘career’. We wanted to listen in. … Continue reading →

Posted in Coulsdon, Croydon Central, Gavin Barwell, Ken Towl, Mario Creatura | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Thornton Heath ‘boosted’ by Camilla’s vaccination centre visit

Posted on March 3, 2021 by insidecroydon

Health service workers, volunteers and those Thornton Heath locals arriving at a local church for their coronavirus vaccination appointment at lunchtime today were given an added boost when the Duchess of Cornwall turned up on a visit to see the … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon CCG, Gavin Barwell, Health, Thornton Heath | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

‘Best in the business’ Creatura lands new Westminster job

Posted on January 21, 2021 by insidecroydon

WALTER CRONXITE, political editor, on the latest job manoeuvre by someone whose political ambitions exceed his abilities Mario Creatura, the Tory councillor who sought the help of the SPAC Nation cult church to try to win him the Croydon Central … Continue reading →

Posted in Coulsdon, Croydon Central, Gavin Barwell, Mario Creatura | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Barwell’s Downing Street book is promising ‘revelations’

Posted on December 8, 2020 by insidecroydon

Gavin Barwell, the author of the less-than-acclaimed How To Lose A Marginal Seat, has been signed up to write another book. As if the £305 per day attendance allowance at the House of Lords was not enough, nor the various … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Central, Gavin Barwell | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

French boardroom revolution could force Westfield sell-off

Posted on November 10, 2020 by insidecroydon

By STEVEN DOWNES It is looking increasingly likely that Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield will look to unload any interests they hold in the long-promised £1.4billion redevelopment scheme for Croydon town centre. It is almost two years since URW decided to “review” the already … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Newman leaves it to others to clear up as he quits as leader

Posted on October 13, 2020 by insidecroydon

TOWN HALL SKETCH: Finally, reluctantly, Croydon’s council leader agrees to stand down. But, as STEVEN DOWNES reports, Tony Newman might hang around for a while yet, ‘like a fart in a lift’ It was barely 10 minutes in, and this … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Butler, Croydon Council, Gavin Barwell, Jo Negrini, Paul Scott, Sarah Jones MP, Steve Reed MP, Stuart Collins, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Tories in call for Town Hall meeting and Newman’s resignation

Posted on September 5, 2020 by insidecroydon

Town Hall reporter KEN LEE on how the borough’s Conservative opposition appears to be waking from its slumbers, as the council leader is accused of ‘reckless financial mismanagement’ Jason Perry, in his first significant act as leader of the Conservative … Continue reading →

Posted in Chris Philp MP, Croydon Central, Croydon Council, Croydon North, Croydon South, Gavin Barwell, Jason Perry, Sarah Jones MP, Simon Hall, Steve Reed MP, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Tories issue plea to members to help them ‘fill our hole’

Posted on August 28, 2020 by insidecroydon

Croydon’s Tories are calling for Tony Newman to stand down as council leader immediately, saying the Town Hall finances “are in an appalling state”. But with the slapstick comic timing of Frank “Ooo Betty” Spencer, the Conservatives’ criticism of Newman … Continue reading →

Posted in Chris Philp MP, Croydon Central, Croydon South, Gavin Barwell, Richard Ottaway MP, Tim Pollard | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Ex-councillor admits he was wrong over Westfield scheme

Posted on August 17, 2020 by insidecroydon

A former deputy council leader has spoken publicly about their deep regret for their part in bringing developers, such as Westfield, to their town centre, leaving it as “a tragedy of a place now”. “There’s plenty of nostalgia and lots … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Boris Johnson, Business, Centrale, Croydon Council, Gavin Barwell, Jo Negrini, Planning, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Labour councillors signal major Town Hall U-turn over Westfield

Posted on June 19, 2020 by insidecroydon

Croydon Council is preparing to complete a full 180-degree U-turn over their position on Westfield and the long-promised and undelivered £1.4billion temple to consumerism in the town centre. “It makes sense for radical overhaul of the proposals for Croydon,” was … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, CPO, Croydon Council, Jo Negrini, Sean Fitzsimons, Tony Newman, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Former Barwell aide tweets his support for ‘Tommy Robinson’

Posted on June 8, 2020 by insidecroydon

Shaun Bailey, the very dim Tory candidate for London Mayor, came in for another round of criticism last night after his Twitter account posted praise for the supporters of far-right racist extremist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, known to some as “Tommy Robinson”. … Continue reading →

Posted in Coulsdon, Coulsdon West, Gavin Barwell, Ian Parker, Mario Creatura | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

£1.4bn scheme loses supporter as Hammerson chief quits

Posted on May 28, 2020 by insidecroydon

Our closed-down-shops-and-malls correspondent, MT WALLETTE, on another potentially damaging turn of events for those who still hold out hope that the town centre might be ‘regenerated’ with a new shopping centre While council leader Tony Newman was gilding the lily … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Desperate Newman needs Westfield Mk IV to save his skin

Posted on May 27, 2020 by insidecroydon

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, the France-based international shopping mall owners, have given council leader Tony Newman “a very positive letter” about the company’s commitment to Croydon – despite having left the town centre in a state of development blight for almost a decade. … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, Croydon Council, Debenhams, Jo Negrini, Tony Newman, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Centrale’s Debenhams to remain closed after lockdown ends

Posted on May 7, 2020 by insidecroydon

Our demise-of-high-street-retailing correspondent, MT WALLETTE, says that there’s no coming back from the latest hammer blow to the £1.4bn town centre regeneration scheme Coronavirus claimed another victim last night: Debenhams in Croydon. In truth, the department store, which has been … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Business, Centrale, Croydon Council, Debenhams, Gavin Barwell, Jo Negrini, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments