Tag Archives: Leila Ben-Hassel

Demolition shows how council’s planners have no ‘red lines’

STEVE WHITESIDE on the developing (geddit?) saga of a house-builder who manages to ignore planning conditions laid down by elected councillors, thanks to some considerable assistance being provided by council staff The sad saga of 158 Purley Downs Road, where … Continue reading

Posted in Business, Community associations, Croydon Council, Environment, Heather Cheesbrough, Housing, Leila Ben-Hassel, Lynne Hale, Nicola Townsend, Planning, Property, Sanderstead, South Croydon, Yvette Hopley | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

MP joins objectors as Heathfield House plans get called in

A council official-backed proposal to convert Heathfield House into a special school, surrounding it with 9ft-high prison-style fencing, has been “called in” for consideration by the planning committee. Today is the final day for residents and interested bodies to lodge … Continue reading

Posted in Business, Croydon Central, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Heathfield House, Leila Ben-Hassel, Planning, Sarah Jones MP, Schools | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Referendum offers us a chance for consensus in Croydon

REFERENDUM COUNTDOWN: Last week, Labour’s Leila Ben-Hassel offered her reasons for opposing a change in the way the council is governed. With the borough-wide referendum being staged tomorrow, resident – and voter – IAN KIERANS questions the councillor’s arguments Councillor … Continue reading

Posted in 2021 Mayor Referendum, Leila Ben-Hassel, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Council governance is poor due to lack of competent cultures

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

Councillor’s alarm call helps save lives in Thornton Heath fire

A Croydon councillor has spoken of how she called 999 in the early hours of this morning after she was woken up by “horrible screams” and “saw loads of black smoke coming out of neighbour’s house”. Leila Ben-Hassel is a … Continue reading

Posted in Leila Ben-Hassel, London Fire Brigade, Thornton Heath | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Lacey still spinning as he hangs on to his job at Brick by Brick

It is not only the former council chief exec who has shown unconcealed contempt for the borough’s residents. Now, as our housing correspondent BARRATT HOLMES reports, the discredited head of the council-owned builders is pushing his luck, too Colm Lacey … Continue reading

Posted in Brick by Brick, Callton Young, Colm Lacey, Croydon Council, Hamida Ali, Housing, Jane Avis, Leila Ben-Hassel, Section 114 notice, Stuart King | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

The late, late show: scrutiny sees anger and hears of bullying

CROYDON IN CRISIS: The council is ‘on a journey’, according to the interim chief executive, who clung firmly to platitudes and clichés at her first scrutiny committee this week. But will it all be just ‘words, words, words’, as a … Continue reading

Posted in Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Hamida Ali, Jerry Fitzpatrick, Jo Negrini, Joy Prince, Katherine Kerswell, Paul Scott, Report in the Public Interest, Sean Fitzsimons, Section 114 notice, Tony Newman, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

King’s peers crown him Croydon Labour’s new deputy leader

CROYDON IN CRISIS: The alarm signals over the electoral fate of the Town Hall, and perhaps even the Croydon Central marginal parliamentary seat, saw the borough’s Labour councillors given a stern lecture last night. By WALTER CRONXITE, political editor Stuart … Continue reading

Posted in Alisa Flemming, Croydon Central, Croydon Council, Hamida Ali, Leila Ben-Hassel, Manju Shahul Hameed, Paul Scott, Sarah Jones MP, Stuart King, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ben-Hassel joins contest to become council deputy leader

‘We can’t do business as usual’ says rookie councillor looking to make an impression, writes KEN LEE, our Town Hall reporter Leila Ben-Hassel, a Croydon councillor only since March 2019, last night announced herself as a fourth contender to become … Continue reading

Posted in Alisa Flemming, Hamida Ali, Leila Ben-Hassel, Manju Shahul Hameed, Stuart King | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Brick by Brick CEO says company has sold 6 houses. Or is it 5?

Our overdevelopment correspondent, BARRATT HOLMES, reports on the latest admission of incompetence from Croydon Council’s loss-making house-builders Five. Or it might be six. Colm Lacey, the former council employee who has been promoted way beyond his skills and abilities to … Continue reading

Posted in Alison Butler, Andrew Pelling, Brick by Brick, Business, Colm Lacey, Croydon Council, Housing, Jo Negrini, Leila Ben-Hassel, Vidhi Mohan | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

‘Lack of trust’ sees arts venue selling just 26% of tickets

With the Fairfield Halls refurbishment costs now confirmed as £42.6m, and still rising, the venue is struggling to win back its audiences, as KEN LEE reports The costs of refurbishing the Fairfield Halls rose by another £1.6million in just five … Continue reading

Posted in Art, Ashcroft Theatre, BH Live, Brick by Brick, Colm Lacey, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Jerry Fitzpatrick, Jo Negrini, Neil Chandler, Sean Fitzsimons | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Creatura’s Town Hall promotion could signal early end of May

The next full meeting of our council is Monday’s anachronistic annual ‘mayor-making’ ceremony in the Town Hall chamber. Ahead of it, the council’s two political groups have been tinkering with their line-ups. Our political editor, WALTER CRONXITE, reports that one … Continue reading

Posted in Alisa Flemming, Chris Clark, Crime, Croydon Council, Helen Redfern, Knife crime, Leila Ben-Hassel, Mario Creatura, Oni Oviri, Purley, Stephen Mann, Steve O'Connell, Tim Pollard, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Politicians’ posturing and positioning as Brexit chaos reigns

Political editor WALTER CRONXITE tracks the activities of Croydon’s Town Hall and Westminster elites over a weekend where the fate of the nation appeared ever more precarious, in some part thanks to the ill-judged interventions of sometime MP Gavin Barwell … Continue reading

Posted in Chris Philp MP, Croydon Central, Croydon North, Croydon South, Gavin Barwell, Mario Creatura, Sarah Jones MP, Steve Reed MP | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Tory vote slumps to 15% as Ben-Hassel wins in Norbury

KEN LEE reports from a draughty church hall in south London where … nothing much was learned Leila Ben-Hassel is the new councillor for Norbury and Pollards Hill, following yesterday’s ward by-election, where the Tory vote collapsed amid the current … Continue reading

Posted in Croydon Council, Croydon North, Jo Negrini, Leila Ben-Hassel, Norbury | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Barwell blamed for Brexit vote chaos on eve of by-election

The chair of Croydon Tories has accused Theresa May of having ‘betrayed’ her party and the country. Political editor WALTER CRONXITE on how the Conservative Party’s deep divisions at Westminster could be demonstrated in today’s Norbury and Pollards Hill council … Continue reading

Posted in Gavin Barwell, Leila Ben-Hassel, Maggie Mansell, Norbury | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Seven in the running for Norbury and Pollards Hill by-election

KEN LEE, our Town Hall reporter, goes through the runners and riders for next month’s council by-election There are to be seven candidates in the Norbury and Pollards Hill ward by-election being staged on March 14, after UKIP and the … Continue reading

Posted in Leila Ben-Hassel, Norbury | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Ben-Hassel is overwhelming winner for Labour in Norbury

WALTER CRONXITE, our political editor, on how a ward selection meeting last night capped off an altogether bad day for the council leadership Leila Ben-Hassel was last night selected as Labour’s candidate to stand in the Norbury and Pollards Hill … Continue reading

Posted in Leila Ben-Hassel, Maggie Mansell, Norbury, Shafi Khan, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment