On 7 May 2026, residents in the Hanwell Broadway ward will vote to choose who represents them at Ealing Council.
EALING.NEWS has asked all candidates standing to become a councillor, 7 questions about who they are, what they hope to deliver and why they want residents to vote for them.
Here’s what Simon Anthony, standing for Ealing Green Party in North Acton has to say:
Tell us a bit about yourself, your priorities for the ward and why you want to be councillor for North Acton?
I have just returned to living in Ealing after a break of many years. I was born in Hanwell 68 years ago. I lived and worked in Ealing for over 30 years and was involved in Ealing Civic Society for most of that time because my parents were very active members. I worked at BBC Television Centre for a decade before starting a family in Rushcliffe in Nottingham. In 1991 I joined the Green Party there as a life member and stood for election many times.
I am a lover of classical music, nature, space, science and philosophical but practical thinking.
I now live with my Iranian wife just outside the ward as a retired but active couple. I contracted Long Covid in 2020 and know from deep and continuing personal experience the issues facing the NHS and disabled people.
What motivates you?
Obviously, as a long standing Green, the environment is front and centre to all my concerns. I recognise that people and society are central to the environment, damage to that damages all of us – a point missed by many politicians. I do not hanker for an imaginary lost golden era before humans ruined the planet, I see incredible hope for the future through the extraordinary advances made possible by the integration of knowledge in Artificial Inteligence systems. These require commensurately great governance or they will rule us rather than work with us. I was a college lecturer in IT for over thirty years and still write programs for special needs and social inclusion.
What is your own personal connection to either North Acton or any other part of the borough?
Having grown up here I am delighted to return after 30 years away. I was educated at Hobbayne Primary School and what was Ealing Grammar School I remember the general area fondly and have special links to the ‘New’ Broadway centre which Ealing Civic Society worked so hard to influence. I have lived in Central, West and now North Ealing as well as Northfields over the years, living partly in Sydney. I’m not moving again – my roots are here.
What do you consider to be your 3 top political, work or personal achievements and what impact have they had?
Top must be my thirty years work as an IT lecturer and programmer for special needs and foundation students. Next could be the fact that I have given people the chance to vote as a Green many times over the last 35 years. And not forgetting my work with local environmental groups has helped save both Ealing and Nottingham from massive road ‘development’ schemes which would have covered our green areas with tarmac and concrete. It took twenty years in Nottingham, but we won !
What do you consider to be the top 3 challenges North Acton faces and how will you as a councillor address them?
It is important, indeed essential, for politicians and the public to realise that social inclusion does not mean or even threaten the way any of us want to live our lives. I heard recently that Christianity was to be banned by the Greens ! This may be one of the fear stoking concepts sparked by uninformed anti green pressure groups. As a Councillor I would aim to stop any anti any group thinking of any type and concentrate on the positive gains that we can all share in a multicultural society.
World events have powerful and painful local impacts. I would do all I could to reduce the environmental and social damage done anywhere as it always comes back to haunt us wherever we live.
More specifically I would act to reduce costs of living and increase provision of social services by redirection of funding from areas yet to be determined. I do not have all the answers, but, if elected I will have the facilities to find them.These are my goals.
What do you love about North Acton and the borough of Ealing?
I have lived roughly half of my adult life in Ealing, the rest has been spent in Nottinghamshire and Sydney NSW. I have enjoyed life in all these homes but Ealing is where I started and where I intend to give back as much as I can. Ealing’s parks hold a special delight for me, the care and attention thay have been given reflects well on the relevant departments over the years. Credit where it is due. The Arts are well supported, the Ealing Symphony Orchestra nd the Quaestors Theatre are beacons of hope for all our residents.
How accessible will you be to North Acton residents and how can they get in contact with you now and if elected how will you ensure you are accessible to them in the future?
For part of my working life I was a web developer. Today AI has taken away that job, as well as video editor and indeed teacher, but I still have these skills. I am also a spotlight registered actor. I can use these abilities, IT for distance contact and interpersonal skills in my retirement time to meet with and understand the desires and specific requirements of all residents. I shall not guarantee to uphold or fulfil every request but I can say I shall listen and do what can be done within the spirit of the Green Party – as wonderfully set out in the manifesto.
Click here for all North Acton candidates standing.
Full coverage of the 2026 Ealing Council local elections and candidates standing can be found here.
