Croydon Residents Fear Labour 27% Council Tax Bombshell

Hard-pressed residents in the London Borough of Croydon are living in fear of a massive Council Tax rise if the Labour group get in at the Local elections in May. The previous Labour administration increased Council Tax on residents by a whopping 27.3% in a single year, leaving many working households struggling to pay bills and feed their families.

So devastating was the rise on household incomes, that a public petition was launched attracting over 15,000 signatures.

A 27% increase for an average household could cost hundreds of pounds, meaning family summer holidays could be cancelled and leisure time scrapped.

The current Conservative Council has frozen Council tax and even managed to give residents a £25 cash rebate, just in time for the World Cup celebrations. 

Waddon Leisure Centre Celebrates Its First Anniversary

The Waddon Leisure Centre, backed, built and delivered by Croydon’s Conservative Council has celebrated its first anniversary. The building, used by local residents from all around the borough of Croydon has proved a real hit with residents and is now the central point for community activities.

The project has come under heavy attack from Labour Party blogs and supporters, who are running an anti-Croydon campaign which has caused huge damage to the town’s reputation. Despite these negative attacks, users of the leisure centre are very supportive. The facilities include a pool, gym, spinning studio and basketball court.

Croydon Conservatives’ Council Tax Freeze Puts Labour on Ice

The Croydon Conservative policy to freeze Council tax for every household in the borough has further damaged the Labour group’s chances in key marginal swing seats, heaping pressure on beleaguered Labour leader Tony Newman to raise his game. The key policy includes a £25 rebate for residents across the borough and is expected to resonate well with hard-up families struggling with the costs of living.

The Croydon Labour group is still haunted by its reputation for promoting and supporting massive Council Tax rises, which have previously pushed up family bills by hundreds of pounds. The last time Croydon Labour were elected into the town hall, Council Tax was increased by a whopping 27.3% in a single year, the move left thousands of families struggling to make ends meet and find the extra money.

The Council Tax ‘fear factor’ is understood to be a key challenge for Labour in previously safe wards such as New Addington, where workers on modest incomes could be hit hard by any rise in tax if Labour are elected. The sense of Labour panic in New Addington has been underlined by visits from an unusually high number of Shadow Cabinet Ministers in the last few weeks.

Croydonians Most Likely to Cheat on Their Partner

New research from the Ministry of Justice figures from July 2011 to June 2013 show that of the 2,664 spouses citing adultery as grounds for divorce, 14 per cent of the cases were in the south London borough of Croydon.

The figures, revealed in the Evening Standard, showed that Croydon has become the divorce capital in London.

Toby Hales, a family lawyer at Hodge, Jones and Allen, said: "Unfortunately, current divorce law forces couples to blame each other unless they can wait two years to get a divorce.

"This means they must record details of their partner’s infidelity or unreasonable behaviour, making an already stressful process even harder for couples and their children. Divorce law urgently needs to change to allow couples to break up without unnecessary confrontation and delay."

 

 

 

Croydon Labour Urged to ‘Come Clean’ Over Candidates Running in Other Boroughs

Croydon Labour candidates are up for selection elsewhere

Croydon Labour has been urged to declare exactly how many of its Council election candidates running in the 2014 local elections are also looking for other jobs in other boroughs. The development comes after the group’s Waddon candidate was revealed to be seeking a job in Carshalton and Wallington.

Labour candidates have been urged to make it clear on their election literature if they are seeking selection in neighbouring boroughs so that residents can pass judgement over whether they would like a part-time or full-time Councillor in post next Spring.

Croydon Labour’s Flagship Candidate Secretly ‘Shortlisted’ in Carshalton, Claims Labour Blog

Eyes on another borough? Labour sources suggest Andrew Pelling is seeking to be MP elsewhere

There was fresh embarrassment for the Croydon Labour Party tonight, after the Labour History blog made claims that Waddon candidate Andrew Pelling was on the shortlist to become the MP of Carshalton and Wallington. The Labour History blog is widely regarded to be a reputable source, with over 7,000 twitter followers, including several senior members of the Croydon Labour party and the shadow cabinet, but the Croydon Gazette has yet to verify the claims despite repeated attempts to contact the Labour press office.  

If true, the scandal will pile further pressure on Croydon Labour leader Tony Newman, already heavily criticised for overseeing the appointment of some of the worst candidates in the Labour group’s electoral history, whilst dumping traditional supporters. The announcement was picked up by local journalist Gareth Davies, who claimed that the tweet could signal that Mr Pelling had bigger ambitious. Along with the majority of people in Croydon, Mr Davies has been frequently targeted by the Inside Croydon blog, of which Mr Pelling is special correspondent, the site’s editor is Steven Downes. The pair’s online antics and savage attacks have sent shockwaves through the local political community, a strategy which Labour Leader Newman refuses to condemn despite outcry from the general public.

Whilst electoral rules do allow politicians to run as parliamentary candidates whilst holding the job of a Councillor elsewhere, it would be unprecedented for an elected MP to continue with Council duties, particularly if the job resided within another constituency. Given the electoral timetable, that would mean that if Mr Pelling was successful in Waddon next Spring and was successful a year later at the general election in 2015 as an MP, he would come under political pressure to resign from the Croydon Council role after serving for only 12 months in the job, a move which would trigger a costly by-election which could place a heavy burden on Labour’s already limited finances.

Strange, but true?

The news was greeted with much amusement by local Conservative activists, “If this is true then we should hold a town party to celebrate, let’s hope he takes Downes with him and they can set up ‘Inside Carshalton’ together."

Croydon Citizen Launches Print Edition

Popular: The Croydon Citizen is now the borough's best-read blog

The Croydon Citizen, Croydon’s best-read blog, is to launch a print edition after 12 successful months of online reporting. The new monthly newspaper will provide the depth of analysis, intelligence of debate and promotion of the great things that ordinary Croydon people are doing to transform their communities.

In a statement, the publication’s founders said, “By reaching out to an even larger section of Croydon’s community, we hope an entirely new cohort of writers can be inspired to join the debate and become new contributors to the publication. In the interests of professionalizing the operation, and formalizing our role as a social enterprise, we have formed a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee.”

A Citizen reader on the website wrote a comment welcoming the news, saying “This is incredible news. An exciting venture and a major boost for Croydon. May the force be with you!”

In response to the news, The Croydon Gazette, Croydon’s second best-read blog also announced it was considering going into print, subject to funding issues in 2014.