Mayor Jason Perry has warned that Labour’s latest comments on reviving council-led housebuilding amount to “Brick by Brick 2.0” and show they have learned nothing from the financial catastrophe they inflicted on Croydon.
In a recent interview, Labour's mayoral candidate said she would “consider” bringing back council-run development and that “we have to keep these options open”.
Residents know exactly what those options look like.
Under the last Labour administration, Croydon Council poured more than £200 million of taxpayers’ money into its wholly owned company Brick by Brick. It was sold as a way to generate income for the borough. Instead, it helped drive Croydon into bankruptcy.
Loans were not repaid. Promised returns never materialised. The company continued to post losses, including £7.6 million in the year ending March 2023. Around £110 million due to the council remained outstanding. Audit findings highlighted serious mismanagement. Government intervention followed.
The result was three Section 114 bankruptcy notices and £1.4 billion of debt.
And it wasn’t just the finances.
Across the borough, Labour’s model meant concreting over green spaces, demolishing family homes and replacing them with blocks of flats that thousands of local residents repeatedly objected to. Communities were ignored. Neighbourhood character was damaged. Trust was shattered.
Mayor Jason Perry said:
“Labour bankrupted Croydon. They tied up more than £200 million in a failed property company, ignored warning signs and left residents to deal with the consequences. We are still paying the price.
Now they are talking about reviving council-led housebuilding and pursuing a £200 million Monopoly gamble in the town centre. That is not a new vision. It is the same reckless mindset that caused the crisis in the first place.
Croydon must never go back to the bad old days of Labour - speculative borrowing, concreting over communities and gambling with taxpayers’ money.”
The Mayor said Labour’s proposed use of large-scale compulsory purchase orders on major town centre sites could expose the council to liabilities running into the hundreds of millions of pounds - at a time when financial discipline is essential.
Since 2022, Croydon has stabilised its finances, had its accounts signed off and begun restoring investor confidence. The focus has been on responsible regeneration and protecting taxpayers from further risk.
Mayor Perry added:
“This election is about trust. Labour had their chance. They bankrupted Croydon. They damaged our neighbourhoods. They lost the confidence of residents.
I will not allow this borough to be dragged backwards into Brick by Brick 2.0.”
Croydon Conservatives said the choice in May is clear: continued recovery and financial discipline - or a return to the failed policies that brought the council to collapse.
