To be Councillor in Croydon is a privilege and honour, but it does come with a health warning
Like many Croydonians, i have seen the town struggle over the past few years, striving for its own identity, the north / south divide, outer London or inner London question and now the bombshell of the Labour administration bankrupting the Council and going cap in hand to the Government for a £120 million loan just to balance the books.
We have heard opposition Conservative Council members citing / quoting comments they made during past Council meetings suggesting that Labour were wrong in the decisions they were about to take and in part were not reassured, It would also prove difficult to gather as much information as possible so the Conservative opposition could make an informed decision based on the facts before them, that is why many Conservative Members decided to probe further in the face of overwhelming hostility.
Are we surprised? no not really, consider March 2003 when Labour put up Council tax by 27% the then Leader of the Conservative group derided the tax hike and said it was 'not acceptable'
We saw the delay of Westfield and Hammerson after the Conservative administration gave the go ahead, once Labour came into administration they halted and delayed the project, with the town seeing no benefit at all even to this day.
We saw Labour introduce 'Brick by Brick' this was a financial disaster waiting to happen, with very little information and behind the scene deals. The Council is now in an uncomfortable position with potentially a £200 million loss with no dividends being paid yet,
And who has and will pay for Labours financial incompetence, hard working council staff, the voluntary sector, the vulnerable under the Council's Social Care packages, and of course the tax payer with years of austerity to come and more borrowing to follow
Many residents may have an opinion on this matter, many will suggest that all politicians have poor judgement, many won't care until it affects them personally. But there is now a tide of opinion which is starting to really question how this could happen, and now the residents of Croydon want "heads to roll" based upon the financial incompetence of Labour's collective responsibility, they question who was responsible?
Under Conservative pressure, two senior Labour Councillors Tony Newman and Simon Hall have resigned, with I suspect a number of Labour Councillors not standing for election next year.
Does this wipe the slate clean, no, there is much more work to be done and many questions unanswered but at least it starts the process of the Council leadership answering the question of 'accountability' to a small degree. Should the Labour leadership of the Council acted earlier - indeed yes, but they chose the less contentious path of allowing those councillors to fall on their own sword.
It will be a difficult road ahead for Croydon and the Council, but we all hope that with a new change of administration next year in the local elections, it will beckon a new beginning for the residents of Croydon {yes still with financial implications) but a new steer towards better financial management.
