Croydon's Mayor has sparked outrage by refusing to apologise to a local resident after council contractors painted a disabled parking bay around his legally parked car, leading to a series of mistaken penalty charges.
A Parking Nightmare in New Addington
The incident, which has drawn national condemnation, began on a non-restricted street in New Addington. Resident Silva Stone filmed as contractors marked out a new disabled bay directly around his stationary black Audi on December 3. The situation escalated when a Croydon Council parking warden later issued a penalty charge notice, despite instructions from the contractors that the vehicle should be exempt.
A procedural error by the warden resulted in Silva mistakenly receiving a total of four tickets between November 22 and 26. The council confirmed all penalties were cancelled once the mistake was identified, but only after Silva shared the footage online, where it quickly went viral.
'No, No and No': The Mayor's Defiant Stance
At a full council meeting on December 10, local ward councillor Kola Agboola pressed Mayor Jason Perry for a public apology, an explanation, and assurances such an error would not recur. Councillor Agboola revealed the saga had unleashed "a wave of online abuse" against himself, residents, and the parking warden involved.
In a blunt response, Mayor Perry stated: "I guess the answer is no, no and no." He argued no apology was necessary because the tickets were not processed, calling the resolution "fairly routine." The Mayor also claimed painting bays around parked vehicles was "fairly common practice" when installing new spaces, suggesting cars could be in place for weeks if an owner was on holiday.
He explained that contractors normally record vehicle registrations to prevent ticketing, but acknowledged the warden on this occasion failed to note the exemption. Mayor Perry then questioned Silva's motives for posting the footage online, asking why the images were shared "in the first place."
Resident Condemns 'Disgraceful' Council Attitude
In an interview, Silva Stone, a music producer who runs workshops for young people in New Addington, labelled the Mayor's response as "disgraceful." He strongly rejected the inference about his motives, explaining he posted the video due to long-standing, unresolved parking issues with Croydon Council.
"An apology from the council just changes the [attitude] we have towards the council," Silva said. "If you want us to be polite and doing the right thing, then an apology is the right thing to do because they made a mistake."
The controversy has highlighted tensions between the South London council and residents over parking enforcement, raising questions about how many other "innocent motorists" may have been affected by similar errors that were not captured on camera.
