Tag Archives: Jason Cummings

Croydon is in a right Pickles and it is easy to work out why

Posted on January 19, 2023 by insidecroydon

Thurrock, Warrington, Nottingham, Slough, Liverpool, Sandwell… Croydon is far from alone among basket-case boroughs. ANDREW FISHER traces the common cause back to Whitehall Pay more, get less. That seems to have been the message from many councils across the country … Continue reading →

Posted in Andrew Fisher, Croydon Council, Jason Cummings, Mayor Jason Perry, Report in the Public Interest, Tim Pollard, Tony McArdle, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

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

Posted on January 12, 2023 by insidecroydon

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 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Croydon needs deal that could set precedent for all councils

Posted on January 11, 2023 by insidecroydon

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

Posted on December 9, 2022 by insidecroydon

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

Tory blame game over bankruptcy points finger at Westminster

Posted on November 24, 2022 by insidecroydon

There was something archly cynical, and deliberately misleading, about how Croydon’s Conservatives turned Tuesday’s announcement of the borough’s bankruptcy into an exercise in political point-scoring. None of which will help the borough’s residents, writes ANDREW FISHER Croydon’s Conservative councillors were … Continue reading →

Posted in Andrew Fisher, Chris Philp MP, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Croydon South, Jason Cummings, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Tories accuse Labour of ‘shocking mistakes’ over budgets

Posted on November 22, 2022 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Mayor Perry has made a political play with the  Conservative government in an effort to re-set the council’s finances. Again. By our political editor, WALTER CRONXITE Croydon’s Conservatives were quick to play the blame game this morning … Continue reading →

Posted in Callton Young, Hamida Ali, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Tony McArdle | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Mayor Perry has ‘second thoughts’ about investing in Croydon

Posted on November 21, 2022 by insidecroydon

‘Things are going to get worse before they get better,’ said the borough’s £81,000 per year part-time Mayor last week, as he begins to find his Town Hall task a bit of a struggle, reports WALTER CRONXITE, political editor Jason … Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Art, Boxpark, Business, CPO, Croydon Council, CVA, LOST, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Property, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

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

Posted on September 7, 2022 by insidecroydon

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

Posted on September 6, 2022 by insidecroydon

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

4 former council bosses charged by police… as Croydon waits

Posted on August 25, 2022 by insidecroydon

Investigations into wrongdoing in local government can take many years. A meeting at the Town Hall next week could provide a long-awaited chink of public accountability into the mismanagement – possibly worse – that led to Croydon Council’s financial collapse, … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Guy van Dichele, Hazel Simmonds, Jason Cummings, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lynne Hale, Mayor Jason Perry, Report in the Public Interest, RIPI II: Fairfield Halls, Simon Hall, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Tory government delays finance reports to help Mayor Perry

Posted on August 24, 2022 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: It’s almost nine months since Whitehall released the last quarterly report from its Improvement Panel on the state of the cash-strapped council’s finances, prompting accusations of political favours for the Conservatives. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES It’s not … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Jason Cummings, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Report in the Public Interest, Section 114 notice, Tony McArdle | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Fairfield: £300k council fraud investigation and still no answers

Posted on August 19, 2022 by insidecroydon

EXCLUSIVE: Council says its specialist investigators have yet to find anything around the £67m botched refurbishment of the arts centre which needs to be reported to the police. By STEVEN DOWNES An investigation to discover if there was any fraud … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Butler, Brick by Brick, Business, College Green, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Jason Cummings, Jo Negrini, Property, Richard Simpson, RIPI II: Fairfield Halls, Robert Ward, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Perry in cover-up of £18m budget overspend in first 100 days

Posted on August 17, 2022 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: The borough’s new Mayor has already overspent on an agreed budget by £20m – but won’t be producing financial reports until next year. EXCLUSIVE by WALTER CRONXITE, political editor Croydon Council is already £18million over its budget … Continue reading →

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Dr Ola Olasode, General Purposes and Audit Committee, Improvement Board, Jason Cummings, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stuart King, Tony McArdle | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Appeal to audit committee chair to demand missing reports

Posted on July 8, 2022 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: ‘Is this acceptable?’ Labour leader lists the 9 pieces of detailed financial reporting that were absent from this week’s cabinet papers. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES The Labour group at Croydon Town Hall has lodged a formal complaint … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Dr Ola Olasode, General Purposes and Audit Committee, Improvement Board, Jason Cummings, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stuart King | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Tory Mayor wants to keep finances under wraps for 9 months

Posted on July 6, 2022 by insidecroydon

Political editor WALTER CRONXITE on early signs of less accountability at the Town Hall under the Conservative administration Jason Perry, Croydon’s part-time Mayor, will tonight be accused of “closing down the books” by reducing the frequency of reports on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Jason Cummings, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stuart King, Tony McArdle | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Tory quits party over selection for South Croydon safe seat

Posted on May 27, 2022 by insidecroydon

Our south of the borough correspondent, PEARL LEE, reports on acrimony and manoeuvrings among the Conservatives over their choice of by-election candidate Danielle “Dani” Denton has been selected by the Conservatives as their candidate in the South Croydon ward by-election … Continue reading →

Posted in 2022 council elections, Fairfield, Jason Cummings, Jason Perry, Maria Gatland, Michael Neal, South Croydon | Tagged , , , , , , | 11 Comments

MPs’ gofers and failed businesses: new cabinet’s back-stories

Posted on May 23, 2022 by insidecroydon

Top team, or top chumps? Town Hall reporter KEN LEE runs the rule over the backgrounds of the new Mayor and his Tory colleagues in charge of delivering £68m-worth of budget cuts over the next two financial years We know … Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe East, Andrew Stranack, Business, Chris Philp MP, Croydon South, Gavin Barwell, Jason Cummings, Jeet Bains, Lynne Hale, Maria Gatland, Mayor Jason Perry, Ola Kolade, Scott Roche, Yvette Hopley | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

£100,000 Mayor Perry unveils his old team as the new team

Posted on May 20, 2022 by insidecroydon

WALTER CRONXITE, political editor, on the completely predictable make-up of the borough’s executive Mayor’s first cabinet, and the wheeling and dealing over who will chair the Town Hall’s most influential committees Given that it took nearly five days to count … Continue reading →

Posted in Andrew Stranack, Croydon Council, Jason Cummings, Jeet Bains, Katherine Kerswell, Lynne Hale, Maria Gatland, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Scott Roche, Sean Fitzsimons, South Croydon, Yvette Hopley | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments

MP Jones accused of breaking Commons rules over leaflet

Posted on March 21, 2022 by insidecroydon

Sarah Jones, Labour’s MP for Croydon Central, has been accused of breaking parliamentary rules over the use of the Commons logo and her Westminster email address on constituency “updates” which feature her party’s candidate for election as the borough’s first … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Central, Gavin Barwell, Jason Cummings, Sarah Jones MP, Val Shawcross | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Budget is approved but Labour council haunted by its past

Posted on March 9, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Back-to-back meetings yesterday pushed through the paperwork to balance the books and increase Council Tax. But Hamida Ali’s administration cannot shake off its part in the borough’s financial calamity. By WALTER CRONXITE, political editor With the £120million … Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Butler, Andrew Pelling, Andrew Stranack, Brick by Brick, Chris Buss, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Hamida Ali, Ian Parker, Jason Cummings, Jeet Bains, Lynne Hale, Maddie Henson, Paul Scott, Report in the Public Interest, Sean Fitzsimons, Section 114 notice, Simon Hall, Stuart King, Tony Newman, Vidhi Mohan | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Listed Sandrock pub under threat again from ‘hideous’ scheme

Posted on February 22, 2021 by insidecroydon

A “hideous” development proposal for the site of a locally listed Victorian pub in Shirley which has already been rejected twice is being brought forward to the council’s planning committee again this week, with the planning department recommending that the … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing, Planning, Pubs, Shirley | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

CEO Kerswell gets ready to reorganise council’s senior officials

Posted on February 9, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: A meeting last night showed that no one had bothered removing former leader Tony Newman from an important committee, while councillors lacked the power to sack the chief executive or other senior officials. WALTER CRONXITE reports That … Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson, Hamida Ali, Heather Cheesbrough, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Paula Murray, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

£100m questions on Ali’s ‘transparent, open and honest’ pledge

Posted on February 8, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Political editor WALTER CRONXITE on the growing row over council secrecy over Brick by Brick and the fire sale of property assets The secrecy over the consequences of the council’s plan to wind-down failed housing developer Brick … Continue reading →

Posted in Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Hamida Ali, Jason Cummings, Property, Stuart King, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Council set to lend more money to failing Brick by Brick

Posted on January 15, 2021 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: When in a hole, stop digging? Not Croydon’s bankrupt council, which is ‘damned if it does, damned if it doesn’t’ according to a senior Tory councillor over plans to throw more cash at its loss-making house-builder. KEN … Continue reading →

Posted in Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Lisa Taylor, Report in the Public Interest, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Croydon gets Commons debate, but Labour MPs go AWOL

Posted on December 17, 2020 by insidecroydon

The collapse of Croydon Council’s finances got a debate all to itself at the House of Commons last week. But two of the borough’s three MPs didn’t bother to show up. Adjournment debates are a peculiar piece of parliamentary procedure, … Continue reading →

Posted in Brick by Brick, Croydon Central, Croydon Council, Croydon North, Sarah Jones MP, Section 114 notice, Steve Reed MP | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment