Bringing Classical Liberalism to South London
Thanks to all who came along to our No Passport Required #ThirdWednesday drinks in February. Great to see so many of you again.
Come and meet-up with likeminded freedom lovers, at our No Passport Required drinks at The George, Croydon on Wednesday 16th March, from 7pm.
We will hold these in association with Dick Delingpole’s #ThirdWednesday Libertarian drinks club.
Come and meet us at The George. 17–21 George Street, Croydon. CR0 1LA on Wednesday 16th March, from 7pm.
We are joined by Harley Dalton, the new steward of the Independents for Liberty group, as we discuss Freedom Day 2.0 and the impact of the Sue Gray Report into Partygate. We then chat with Harley about his political journey and his ambitions for the Independents for Liberty.
The Croydon Constitutionalists are proud to host a Hustings for the 2022 local elections.
With representatives of liberty loving parties and an independent mayoral candidate, these hustings are an opportunity to meet those promoting real change in local government.
Following the issuing of the Section 114 notice and de facto bankruptcy, Croydon is in desperate need for new ideas. Come and meet those who have them.
Join us from 7pm, on 24th February 2022, at Clyde Hall, Clyde Road, Croydon, CR0 6SZ.
Full Press Release:
Author Michael Swadling
Most Croydon residents will have a memory of the Croydon Park Hotel, for me some its of work dos, a venue for giving blood and some slightly clandestine visits to the hotel bar conveniently situated in central Croydon but somewhere you’d be unlikely to bump into anyone you didn’t want to see. Pictures of the hotel still adorn travel sites, a reminder of what a great asset to the town the hotel was. Of course that was before lockdown and the benevolent hand of Croydon Council.
“sold at a loss of some £5 million. Ironically a loss of this magnitude is pretty small fry compared to the disaster that Croydon Council has been in recent years.”
News came this week that the hotel purchased by the council in 2018 has been sold at a loss of some £5 million. Ironically a loss of this magnitude is pretty small fry compared to the disaster that Croydon Council has been in recent years. The purchase was of course hailed as a great success at the time, the council was borrowing cheap money to make a strategic investment and return revenue to its overall budget. Of course things didn’t workout quite as planned, to quote Croydon council’s internal auditors:
“The investments in The Colonnades and Croydon Park Hotel were not grounded in a sufficient understanding of the retail and leisure market and have again illustrated that the Council’s strategy to invest its way out of financial challenge rather than pay attention to controlling expenditure on core services was inherently flawed.”
It is easy to be clever after the event, who could have known at the time the things would go so badly wrong? Well whilst no one likes a ‘told you so’, we, err, ‘told you so’. Writing about the hotel purchase together with the purchase of the Colonnade shopping centre in March 2019 we were able to point out the council has no expertise in running commercial property, we calculated the investments only needed a 3% downturn in revenue for taxpayers to be burdened with the costs of servicing the debts funding these projects. Indeed the council has now confirmed the hotel itself had a running cost of £610,000 a year without even being used as a hotel.
Who knows what would have happened without the pandemic but this was foreseeable. The council had already undertaken an upgrade to the famous Surrey Street Market at a cost of 1.1 million resulting in a lost of both casual and permanent traders, costing over £91,000 per trader lost.
I’m reminded, as is often the case with our local authority of Ronald Regan’s famous line that “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, “I’m from the Government and I’m here to help”.
“it removes the conflict of interest, where the council gives planning permission for, and permits licensing of businesses it’s in competition with”
If any good comes from this aside from removing the ongoing running costs from the council, is that it removes the conflict of interest, where the council gives planning permission for, and permits licensing of businesses it’s in competition with. Let’s hope Croydon Council will now stay out of commerce, and instead focus on just doing its basic job right.
On Saturday 22nd January, the Together Declaration and NHS100K, marched in London against vaccine mandates. There are 100,000 plus health and social care staff in the UK who, it is estimated, will lose their jobs on April 1st 2022. People should be free to take the vaccine or not take the vaccine as they see fit, we should not be coercing people into taking drugs.
Photo’s from the day below.
Another great No Passport Required #ThirdWednesday drinks in January. Great to see some many of you on a cold January evening.
Come and meet-up with likeminded freedom lovers, at our No Passports Required drinks at The George, Croydon on Wednesday 16th February, from 7pm.
We will hold these in association with Dick Delingpole’s #ThirdWednesday Libertarian drinks club.
Come and meet us at The George. 17–21 George Street, Croydon. CR0 1LA on Wednesday 16th February, from 7pm.
Maureen Martin of the Christian Peoples Alliance has stood in General and London wide elections for the party. Maureen has also contributed to this site writing about lockdown, and been on our podcast.
With the local elections in May, Maureen will be running in the Lee Green ward in Lewisham.
Maureen thank-you for your time.
“we have a comprehensive manifesto that offers a full programme for Government. The CPA is a growing party and we intend to continue to grow until we are in a position to run the country”
Can you start by introducing yourself and the party to our readers?
I have been a committed Christian for 24 years and an active member of the Christian Peoples Alliance since 2015. Motivated by the desire to see traditional values once again the norm in our nation I joined the CPA to stem the tide of the erosion of Christianity from our culture, in much of which the government has been complicit. I desire to see Christians in all levels of government, but not just individuals scattered amongst the current main stream parties but united under one banner: the Christian Peoples Alliance.
The Christian Peoples Alliance seeks to demonstrate God’s love and God’s holiness and truth in the political world. Our core values are promoting marriage and family stability, upholding the sanctity of life from conception until natural death, supporting persecuted Christians worldwide, caring for the poor and needy and fighting crime. In this way, we believe we are proclaiming the Lordship of Christ.
In addition we have a comprehensive manifesto that offers a full programme for Government. The CPA is a growing party and we intend to continue to grow until we are in a position to run the country. The first step towards this is to have the best manifesto of any political party and we believe this is now in place.
“Most Lewisham residents are trying to figure out how to look after their families in this high inflation economy. Climate change I can assure you is not on the shopping list!”
What do you think are the big issues for the council to tackle in Lewisham?
One of the biggest issues in Lewisham is the housing crisis, and the current Labour council failure to deliver on affordable homes. The current waiting list is 10,000 residents registered with the council, so far Labour have approved a mere 1,000 new homes, a drop in the ocean! The Balfour Gateway Development which commenced in 2013 and is due for completion in 2023 has so far produced zero affordable homes. 362 private rented homes have been delivered with a total of 649 by completion, great deal for Lewisham Council poor deal for Lewisham residents. In addition to which Lewisham’s Labour Council want to become a sanctuary council, to add to the housing crisis. Having an open door policy particularly during the Afghanistan crisis caused by the illegitimate Biden administration in the US. The CPA are all for helping the vulnerable but not at the cost of local residents that have been waiting on the housing list for years only to be unfairly overlooked.
Another issue is the waste of money on the so called climate emergency that does not exist. We should not be spending one penny on reducing carbon emissions. There are enough measures already in place to extract a carbon tax out of motorist: congestion zone for instance and now Ulez. The Mayor Damien Egan has stated that “the climate change emergency is the most serious challenge facing Lewisham”, sounds like a fake news media talking point which has no basis in reality. Most Lewisham residents are trying to figure out how to look after their families in this high inflation economy. Climate change I can assure you is not on the shopping list!
“The CPA’s vision for Lewisham is firstly to have more section 106 agreements with developers that will provide much more affordable homes and wider benefits for Lewisham residents”
More broadly how would the CPA like to see Lewisham change over the coming years?
CPA would like Lewisham residents to be persuaded to look beyond the Labour Party and consider another party hopefully the CPA. Lewisham is considered one of the safest Labour seats in the nation, all of the constituencies in this borough have held by Labour for decades it is time for a change.
The CPA’s vision for Lewisham is firstly to have more section 106 agreements with developers that will provide much more affordable homes and wider benefits for Lewisham residents. Ensuring that homes built are energy efficient. In an area where there are a significant number of empty houses if these cannot be brought back into use we will look at redevelopment to improve and invigorate an area. This will sometimes be painful in the short term but will always have long term benefits. We will also seek to guarantee free emergency night shelters with a free meal for anyone who would otherwise be sleeping rough, with the offer of affordable move-on accommodation and practical help with immediate job seekers allowance and finding work. No one should be left hungry and out in the cold.
We would like to see the 12 billion in benefit cuts delivered by the last Tory government restored, this will be funded by a turnover tax on large corporations such as Facebook, Starbucks and Twitter. This will improve the lives of thousands of Lewisham residents who have been greatly impacted by the poorly implemented universal credit.
We would like to see more devolution or subsidiary where decision making should be give directly to the people at the most local level possible. There is currently too much centralised power which is dangerous and undemocratic.
The CPA would like to strengthen families and marriage in Lewisham, wherever possible we would encourage local authorities to honour Sunday as a day of rest and recreation, make available free of charge counselling and treatment for drug and alcohol addiction, in order to help individuals and families cope with, and overcome, the terrible pressures that come through drug misuse, we would provide more respite centres for families experiencing breakdown and easy access to counselling and training in child rearing free-of-charge to anyone who wants to commit to participating in it. One of the results of strengthening marriage and the family will be less sickness and therefore less pressure on Lewisham’s NHS services. However, the policy of the CPA is to use resources consequently freed up to improve and expand treatment, not just to save money.
The CPA would like to see Lewisham handle waste and recycling more efficiently for instance; recycling and waste processes should always be put out to tender, but local authorities may bid to provide these services. This ensures the greatest efficiency and value for money, encourage research into far greater use of recyclable materials (for example, making roads out of plastic), Consult on ways to encourage creative recycling – particularly with electrical products, appliances and furniture. For instance, charity collection points at recycling centres for books, clothes, and working electrical appliances.
Where councils are responsible for public libraries, we will ensure there is proper and effective discussion and democratic control over groups who are invited to do displays and/or talks there. We consider ‘drag queen story hours’, delivered by men dressed up as women and targeted at very young children, to be completely inappropriate. Only qualified children’s entertainers with age-suitable material should be invited to lead public events for children, not adult entertainers which ‘drag queens’ normally are. If Councils are keen to be “inclusive” then they should include Bible story hours for children. The CPA would oppose Lewisham council funding and support for LGBT Pride marches and events, and oppose the display of associated flags and symbols on public buildings and places. The CPA vision for Lewisham is where its residents can prosper and not be infringed upon by an overbearing intrusive local government.
“I would like to see the Leegate shopping centre in Lee Green finally redeveloped”
What would you like to see the council do for Lee Green ward?
I would like to see the Leegate shopping centre in Lee Green finally redeveloped. This site now owned by Galliard’s is going to be a mix of housing, retail and leisure. This is being held up by local councillors trying to reduce the height of some the blocks and seeking additional funding for more resources.
If people want to get involved how can they help?
Please support me in my ward of Lee Green and go to our website and sign up to get our newsletter and become a supporter or if you wish become a member of the party.
You can contact Maureen via the CPA website www.cpaparty.net, on Facebook, on Twitter @Maureen_cpa, on GETTR @Twiggy56.
If you want change, vote for change. With local elections across London in May, the Croydon Constitutionalists are proud to host a Hustings for the 2022 local elections.
With representatives of liberty loving parties and an independent mayoral candidate, these hustings are an opportunity to meet those promoting real change in local government.
Following the issuing of the Section 114 notice and de facto bankruptcy, Croydon is in desperate need for new ideas. Come and meet those who have them – If you want change, vote for change.
Join us from 7pm, on 24th February 2022, at Clyde Hall, Clyde Road, Croydon, CR0 6SZ.
Speakers:
David Omamogho, Christian People Alliance
https://cpaparty.net/
The Christian Peoples Alliance is a party set up to promote Christian values in our nation.
David stood in Croydon South in the 2017 General Election for the CPA, and will be standing in the upcoming local elections.
Zack Stiling, Heritage Party
https://heritageparty.org/
The Heritage Party stands for free speech and liberty, traditional family values, national sovereignty and financial responsibility.
Zachary stood in Kenley in the 2021 by-election, was on the party’s GLA list the same year, and will be standing in the upcoming local elections.
Gavin Palmer, Independent Candidate for Mayor
Facebook
Gavin is standing as in independent candidate for Croydon’s first elected Mayor.
Laurence Williams, Libertarian Party
https://libertarianpartyuk.com/
The Libertarian Party believes in and promotes the rights of the individual, non–interventionism, laissez-faire capitalism, and limiting the size and scope of government.
Laurence is the London and South East Coordinator for the UK Libertarian Party and has stood in multiple General, European, Welsh Senedd and local elections.
Steve Kelleher, SDP
https://sdp.org.uk/
The SDP is a patriotic, economically left-leaning, and culturally traditional political party.
Steve was last years London Mayoral candidate for the SDP.
Join us:
Thursday 24th February – 7pm
Clyde Hall
Clyde Road,
Croydon,
CR0 6SZ.
Nearest stations: East Croydon (Southern mainline), Sandilands or Lebanon Road (Tramlink).
Limited onsite and street parking available.
We are joined by Tim Duce, as we discuss the impact of Plan B and Boris’ prospects of survival after Partygate along with some potential successors. We then chat about the newly launched True & Fair Party of Gina Miller.
“unfortunately the pandemic has just fallen into that wider culture war that Brexit was part of” Mike
“those backbenchers were ultimately defeated on most of this thanks to the coalition government with Sir Keir Starmer but this might be the thing that the last straw” Tim
“the consensus perhaps on the podcast is the Boris is going to have to go, but whether it’s next week or the may local elections time will tell” Dan
On lockdown: “it’s got to the point where it’s actually had an effect on our culture, and the creative industry and certainly the hospitality industry I think they’re gonna suffer longer” Tim
Laurence Williams is the new London and South East Coordinator Designate for the UK Libertarian Party. Laurence lives in Sidcup and has stood in multiple local elections and the 2010 General Election. We catch-up with Laurence about his new role.
Laurence, thanks for your time.
Can you start by introducing yourself to our readers, and tell us how you became the Designate London & South East Co-ordinator for the Libertarian Party?
I’ve been ‘Bitten’ by Libertarianism after many years in and out of the political wilderness. This lead to me re-joining Libertarian Party recently. This was just in time to be put forward for the vacant role of London and South East Coordinator, which I have accepted.
“I was allowed free – rein to be myself at the hustings in Erith & Thamesmead constituency, exactly what Libertarianism is all about”
You’ve stood in 3 General Elections, 2 Welsh Senedd races, 2 x European elections, and Local elections over the past 32 years. Do you have any enduring memories from previous campaigns?
My favourite election was the 2010 GE for which I was allowed free – rein to be myself at the hustings in Erith & Thamesmead constituency, exactly what Libertarianism is all about, no whip for us! It was a great night, and one voter couple wanted to hire me as a stand – up comic!
We appear to finally be moving out of the period of lockdown. What would you like to see happen to get the country back to a form of normal?
Stop the lockdowns and media scare stories! And stop the useless vax passports!
“‘Libertarian’ to most uninterested ears sounds like ‘lib dem’ or ‘liberal’, and people can’t differentiate easily. Key messages from us are: Small govt, small tax, Large Truths!”
How do you feel the Libertarian message in London goes down, and what do you see as the key messages for the capital?
The Libertarian Voice is comparatively small in London, bought about by a general ignorance and disillusionment in our populace; ‘Libertarian’ to most uninterested ears sounds like ‘lib dem’ or ‘liberal’, and people can’t differentiate easily. Key messages from us are: Small govt, small tax, Large Truths!
Any thoughts you would like to leave our readers with and how can people get involved.
For anyone who fancies having a go at politics, I say, give us a try, you don’t know until you do, you may even enjoy it! To get in touch, it’s either the LPUK website or myself on Facebook via the Libertarian Party London and South East branch page.
