Pressure group calls for the end of council leader role and for the creation of a directly-elected Mayor of Croydon

BY TARA O’CONNOR – Local Democracy Reporter

A group of Croydon residents are demanding the creation of a directly-elected Mayor for Croydon (DEMOC).

The launch of their campaign took place on Wednesday in Purley, where about 200 people gathered at Christ Church CofE Primary School in Montpelier Road.

DEMOC wants to see the current council leader’s position replaced by a Mayor chosen by Croydon’s residents.

Croydon council does have a Mayor – Councillor Humayun Kabir – a role which is a largely ceremonial position He has responsibilities including attending events and chairing the full council meeting , not making any council decisions.

The council leader is Tony Newman.

DEMOC chairman Gerry Meredith-Smith said: “It is time for change in Croydon the current system does not work at all.

“Councillors can currently choose who controls our town. A democratically-elected mayor would be chosen by the voters of Croydon.

“An elected mayor will need to listen to the residents. They won’t get elected unless they have the confidence of the voting majority of people in Croydon.

“If not they can be fired by the people after four years.”

The campaign hopes to get 15,000 signatures – five per cent of the electorate – to trigger a referendum on whether to adopt the new system.

And if it goes through they hope that within 18 months there could be a vote for the borough’s first directly elected mayor, following votes that would take place alongside local elections.

Conservative MP for Croydon South, Chris Philp, is supporting DEMOC.

He said: “They are abusing the powers that the planning committee has to grant planning applications indiscriminately in the borough, most of all in the south of the borough.

“There are places it is reasonable to build flats, these are brownfield sites and Croydon town centre. They should be perusing a brownfield first policy.

“Time and time again people have been there to plead with the planning committee to listen but they never do.”

Jo Milligan from the South Croydon Labour Party said: “Some things are bigger than party politics. This is about the power that is within all of us to influence decisions at a local level and hold our decision makers to account.

“If we get 15,000 signatures on a petition that is quite a big signal to the politicians about what the strength of feeling is, that in itself is powerful.”

However Cllr Sean Fitzsimons, chairman of the council’s overview and scrutiny committee said on twitter said: “It doesn’t matter who is elected mayor, they don’t decide planning applications and can’t appoint the planning committee.

“Planning decisions are made by the planning committee, which is appointed by, and made up of, local councillors.”

Picture: Chairman of DEMOC Gerry Meredith-Smith at the launch event. Photo: Tara O’Connor