Even after 21% council tax hike, Perry wants to be mayor again – inside Croydon

Croydon’s £82,000-a-year part-time mayor Jason Perry wants another four years in the job.

From his depth: Jason Perry wants four more years for £82,000

Tory Perry, who was elected in 2022 with a district-wide majority of less than 600 votes, made the surprise announcement in a little-read news release: London business matters.

But then, in the shallow “two-minute interview” – so nothing too deep for a man who’s deep in a North End puddle – poor Perry also revealed that he’d like to be played by actor Michael Keaton if a movie was ever made of his life. May be Batman – The Porkie Pie Years?

Perry confirmed his ambition in his speech to the mayoral council meeting at Croydon Town Hall last week.

Perry is the district’s first elected mayor.

In his first two years in office, the Tory mayor issued a section 114 notice because he couldn’t balance the books, raised council tax by 21% while flogging loss-making public goods, provides open spaces and public parks for sale, wants to close or demolish half of the borough’s libraries and has added a further £258m to the council’s debts – with a further £76m of borrowing over the next two years.

Superficial: two minutes is about as much as any reasonable person can take from Porkie Pie Perry

Following government intervention last year, which gave greater powers to the Whitehall-appointed “improvement committee”, Perry is not even effectively in control of Croydon Council.

But he is still expected to get another four-year term as mayor in 2026.

“I’m proud to say I’m the first elected mayor in this role that was voted in two years ago,” he said.

“It’s a four-year term and I plan to run for a second term in 2026.”

Perry never expected to be elected in 2022 – he was still on the ballot in the South Croydon ward, seeking re-election as a councilor there.

“Before entering the world of politics full-time, I worked in the family business supplying the construction industry,” Perry said.

Perry never resigned as a director of Carlton Business Plastics (where Michael Perry, 82, is the sole director), a business that continues to trade. Indeed, despite his claim to be “full time” in the world of politics, Perry also holds two other directorships where he describes himself as “CEO” and “CEO”. But not as a “politician”. Not even as “mayor”.

“I inherited a very difficult situation in Croydon – to put it mildly,” Perry said.

“We have made progress in a number of areas, particularly through planning, where we strive to achieve what we call ‘design over density’ and put character first for residents and businesses.”

Perry goes on to mention Croydon’s year as Borough of Culture, referencing Stormzy and Raye, two world-class acts who had nothing to do with Croydon’s year as Borough of Culture…

But we discover that Perry’s business model is Lord Sugar. “Really inspirational,” Perry said, apparently serious.

Perry used the brief interview to mention that he would like more devolution to London boroughs and “more direct funding”. The man who commissioned the £150m Fisher’s Folly council offices – more expensive per square meter than The Shard – has not said how he might use such funding.

But it was only two minutes, a small mercy for which we should all be grateful.

Read more: Call for the conservative mayor to resign after taking over the government
Read more: Residents groups reject Perry-backed Purley ‘pool’ plan
Read more: MP calls on Met to investigate Tory ‘vile scum’ groups
Read more: How businesses benefited at the expense of the City of Culture

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