Inside Croydon

TfL is due to begin major road works on a scheme intended to make the A23 Streatham Hill “safer and better for residents and visitors”, the transport authority said today.

The scheme will create new pedestrian crossings, a protected cycling route and what TfL says will be improved bus lanes for quicker bus journeys.

Transport for London said today that there will be lane closures on Streatham Hill from Monday August 4 until “the autumn”, which seems conveniently vague, but buses will continue to operate their normal routes.

Steve Reed OBE, the MP for Streatham (and Croydon North if he can be bothered), and the environment secretary in Keir Starmer’s government, is facing renewed calls to renationalise privatised water companies, after the biggest, Thames Water, today reported an annual loss of £1.65billion as its debts soared to £16.8billion.

Thames Water’s annual report came the day after the company – which has never built a single reservoir since it was privatised – announced a hosepipe ban affecting 1.1million customers.

A burst water main in Mitcham this morning disrupted water supplies to households across five postcodes in Croydon and Streatham.

Croydon Council described the burst main as “a major incident”.

The water main burst was on Commonside East, near Mitcham Common.

Much of the supply problem was due to a fault at a Thames Water booster station, which left some without any water, or low water pressure.

“We’re sorry if you have no water in the CR0, CR2, CR4, CR7 and SW16 areas,” Thames Water tweeted this morning.

Anthony Morrison, the man shot dead on Imperial Way last week, had been attending a wake following a funeral, it has emerged.

The Metropolitan Police has repeated its appeal for witnesses following the shooting outside CostCo at around 5pm on Thursday, June 19.

The police have already made an arrest. Byron Cole, aged 39, of Gleneldon Road, Streatham, has been charged with murder and possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life, and appeared at Bromley Magistrates’ Court earlier this week.

The Metropolitan Police have this morning named the victim of the shooting as Anthony Morrison. He was 41, and despite emergency treatment from paramedics he died at the scene. His family are being supported by specially trained officers.

Cole was arrested on Sunday. He also faces charges of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

A 37-year-old woman who was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender has been released on bail pending further enquiries.

Simon Hinsta Ghebremedhin was today charged with the Frith Road murder of Marjama Osman last Saturday.

Police and emergency services were called to Frith Road, just off Church Street in Croydon town centre, on May 31 just after 9am, following reports of a stabbing.

Neighbours said that they had seen “a furious argument” taking place on the street before the stabbing: “There was very loud arguing, it was very aggressive. There were three people: a woman and two men,” one said.

Osman, 26, was declared dead at the scene from a single stab wound.

It appears that Steve Reed OBE, the MP for Streatham (and can’t be arsed with Croydon North), is not as big a football fan as he has tried to make out.

Reed, now the environment secretary in Keir Starmer’s Labour government, seemed more than happy to accept £1,786-worth of freebie VIP tickets for a Premier League game at Stamford Bridge in late 2023 when his hosts were Hutchison 3G UK Ltd, the owners of serial polluters Northumbrian Water.

‘Cuts don’t create jobs, they just cause more hardship’ says a letter signed by dozens ofMPs from the right as well as the left of the Labour Party, objecting to proposed cuts in disability benefits

Croydon’s three Labour MPs today once again shunned an opportunity to put the interests of their constituents ahead of their own parliamentary careers, as Prime Minister Keir Starmer looks to be facing the biggest backbench revolt of his government so far.

CROYDON COMMENTARY: Are our borough’s four MPs doing the ‘right thing’? DAVID WHITE doesn’t think so

“Israel has been genociding the Palestinians for months now. The point is why no one stops the carnage. This is the question”

RUGBY ROUND-UP: With one Saturday of the season left to play, our local clubs’ fates are already decided – with one notable exception. PLUS: a grassroots rebellion against the blazers at Twickenham falls flat as controversial CEO survives his no confidence vote.

Our man in the scrum, JOHNNY DOBBYN, reports

The last game of the club rugby club season takes place this Saturday yet, with one important exception, league places are already set regardless of how the final game plays out.