Croydon (Parliament Politics Magazine) – The UK government is ‘minded to’ appoint commissioners to Croydon Council, citing ongoing concerns over financial mismanagement and governance failures.
The government has declared that the appointment of commissioners is necessary because of the Council’s dire financial circumstances, which are brought on by the historic debt and rising service demand.
Before making a final decision, it has requested representations.
Responding to the announcement, the Executive Mayor of Croydon, Jason Perry has said:
“My top priority has always been to fix the Council’s finances for our residents. We have done everything possible to achieve this at a local level whilst protecting vital services.
Croydon Council has made savings of £167m over the last four years and will make £50m more savings this year. We have generated over £230m in capital receipts, including £130m of asset sales and have plans to sell a further £68m assets this year.
The Council also raised Council Tax by 10% over the cap in 2023, to help meet the Panel’s demand that we close the gap in the Council’s finances. We have a fully funded two-year transformation plan to significantly reduce the cost of delivering our services.”
He further added that if at any time the Panel or Government felt that there was any action the Council should be taking, and was not, they had the power to instruct them. They never did.
Surely that means they are doing everything possible, and they agree with their actions. They have already made very difficult decisions and in his view the residents of Croydon have felt enough pain.
Despite all the improvements that have been delivered by the Council and its staff, it appears the Government wants to centralise control into the hands of commissioners.
According to Mayor Perry, he is unwilling to back any cuts that would severely impair local services and is not ready to renege on his pledge to the people that there will be no additional increases in council taxes over the government cap.
Based on the Improvement Panel’s final letter, which was also released today, the government made its announcement.
In addition to disagreeing with the Panel’s findings, Croydon Council has expressed concerns to the Government regarding the letter’s content and adherence to statutory instructions.
Before sending the Government its official response, the Council will weigh all of its alternatives.
On the Council website, you may read the Panel’s letter to the government as well as letters from the Council and Executive Mayor Perry.
What are the government’s next steps after ‘minding to’ appoint commissioners in Croydon?
The government gave Croydon’s Improvement and Assurance Panel more authority to monitor the council’s success, especially in the areas of finance, housing, and transformation, by placing it on a statutory basis in July 2023 rather than selecting commissioners.
The government is still keeping a careful eye on Croydon’s performance. Ministers have made it plain that if Croydon does not satisfy its Best Value Duty or show consistent improvement, the current arrangements—which are overseen by the IAP—will be reviewed and commissioners may be appointed.
If the municipality keeps up its efforts, the IAP plans to leave Croydon by July 2025. Evidence of better financial management, governance, and service delivery is the basis of this approach. The panel will retreat and complete local control will be restored if Croydon keeps moving in this direction.