EXCLUSIVE

by Neil Millard

neil.millard@essnmedia.co.uk

Do you know who Gavin Barwell is?

If not, you should do as last year £23,577 was spent on leaflets, letters and magazines telling people in Croydon who he is.

For those of you still in the dark, Councillor Barwell is the Conservatives' candidate for Croydon Central at the next general election.

Accounts for the Croydon Federation, the Tory association for Croydon South and Croydon Central, show it spent £4,066 on printing costs in 2007.

But in 2008, when local Tories confirmed Cllr Barwell as their election choice, this leapt massively to £43,362.

Of this £23,577 was spent on material advertising Cllr Barwell, while the remainder was split between promoting Croydon South MP Richard Ottaway and Croydon Greater London Authority member Steve O'Connell.

Angry Tory party member Robin Howard, 82, from Upfield, Shirley, says such lavish spending is wrong.

"I absolutely, completely think it is a waste," he said.

Mr Howard believes local Tories are spending so much on promoting Cllr Barwell as they fear Andrew Pelling will stand against him as an independent.

Current Croydon Central MP Mr Pelling had the Tory whip withdrawn after allegations were made, from which charges never materialised, he assaulted his wife.

If he stands it would undoubtedly split the Tory vote and could let Labour claim the seat.

As a keen supporter of Mr Pelling and a member of the party for 65 years, Mr Howard believes the printing expenditure could have been easily avoided.

He said: "It would not have been necessary had Barwell not been chosen. Nobody knew who he was.

"However, if our current estimable MP Andrew Pelling had not been so precipitately deselected or been re-adopted as both common humanity and party interests dictated, none of this expense would have been necessary.

"His track record and popularity is so impressive that no promotion is required."

Mr Howard says what makes the spending even more shocking is that a date hasn't been set for the next general election.

"Why spend over £23,000 when there's no (election) campaign?" he asked.

"I don't think that has happened in the entire history of the Conservative party (in Croydon)."

But Cllr Barwell hit back insisting the whole point of the Federation was to promote its candidates.

He said: "We have substantially increased expenditure since I became the candidate in Croydon Central.

"The Conservative Party raises money to win elections. That's what it is there for.

"So I don't know what he thinks the Conservative Party should spend its money on. I find it bizarre."

The accounts for the 1,510-member Federation state: "Our campaigning costs have been focused on ensuring that we get our Conservative Parliamentary candidate for Croydon Central elected at the next general election."

The Federation had a deficit for 2008 of £8,798 leaving it with a balance of £274,551.

Tory agent Ian Parker added: "The more active we are, and we are really active in the Croydon Central campaign, then the more support that generates for us in new members and people willing to put money into a fighting fund."

Labour's Croydon Central candidate Gerry Ryan has a campaign war chest of just under £12,000 at the moment.

Just £2,900 was spent on promoting him in Croydon Central last year.

Cllr Ryan said: "I knew that (Cllr Barwell's large expenditure) was what was going to happen. I've just got to keep my eye on my game.

"I've got a little campaign fund which I've been working hard at filling.

"It's Obama-esque what I've got to do. I've got to depend on much smaller donations."