The Sheriffs Are Coming to Croydon Council

This week I have been asked to sign a petition to call a referendum on the Shetland Islands staying as part of Scotland or becoming a crown dependency of the UK (see here).  "We are in a unique position as the Northern Gateway in this post-Brexit world.  We have a unique place in the UK and our historic relationships were with the Nordics and we also look to the Arctic."

Cllr James Stockan, who runs Orkney Islands Council siad:  “Both Shetland and Orkney punch above their weight economically and have GDP much above the Scottish average.”  I would call for independence for Croydon but we're totally stuffed financially and wouldn't survive.

Indeed, so broke are bankrupt Croydon Council that Ava Alexis even spotted the Council on "The Sheriffs Are Coming" ....

 

 

...prior to being forced to issue their section 114 notice the debt collectors were already beating at the door as can be seen in this video (about 10 minutes from the end).  Croydon Council owes £1900 in "legal bills" (for what one wonders?) and hasn't paid so (presumably after a CCJ) the Sheriffs come round... TV crew in tow.  After giving them half an hour to cough up or face the Sheriffs seizing their assets an employee is sent down to the lobby to pay the bill on a credit card.  Unfortunately their card is already maxed out so another Council minion is sent down with another card but he can't pay it either as it is above his card limit so eventually the bill is split over two credit cards.  TV crew are thrown out by this point.  This went out in 2018.  Prophetic?

 

There's a transcript here

 

My name's Mr Anderson. I've got a writ here for an outstanding debt that needs to be sorted today.

Can you tell me what it's regarding?

Consent order, for costs?

Yeah, I know about it, I do know about it.
It's been with our finance department. I'll take it upstairs and...

If you can ask your finance department to make a payment of the amount that I'm going to give you.

Well, I can do my best, that's all I can do.

Well, if they don't, I'll be wandering around and then walking out with chairs, tables and everything else.

Yeah, OK.

As long as someone comes down to show me proof that everything's been paid by 9:45...

Might be a little bit longer than that, cos I've got to find the person who's dealing with it.
15 minutes, cos we are a huge organization.

Well, a huge organisation should have had it sorted, then, shouldn't it really?

I hear what you say, but...

All right, I'll work with you. I'll give you till ten...

Thank you very much.

LATER

Croydon Council's skyscraper opened in 2013, and cost a reported £144 million.
Gerald and Rob haven't explored the internal winter garden or been up to the roof terrace, but there's plenty to admire in the lobby.
       

It looks almost like a military badge there, Rob.

It does. Nice little coat of arms.

What's that underneath it? Is it Latin?

That's Latin.

"Ad summa nitamur."

What does that mean?

I reckon, being the Council, it'll probably mean something like, "Strive for perfection."

-Yeah.

-LAUGHTER

Not bad, Gerald. It actually means, "We strive for the highest."