Craig Smith is leader of Ealing Community Independents and a candidate standing in Northfield ward in the Ealing Council local elections on 7 May 2026. He sets out his views.
“A Crisis of Council Accountability – Time for Ealing to Demand Change
“What does a good local councillor look like?
“At the most basic level, a good councillor is someone you actually see and hear from – not just at election time, but all year round. They are present in their ward, responsive when you contact them, active in the community, and loyal first and foremost to residents rather than to a party whip at the Town Hall.
“A good councillor shows up. They walk the streets they represent, knock on doors outside election season, and attend residents’ meetings, tenants’ associations, school events and faith gatherings. They do this not for a photo opportunity, but to build a detailed picture of how people are really living – from fly-tipping hotspots and unsafe crossings to damp housing and struggling high streets.
“When councillors disappear between elections, residents quickly lose trust. Across Ealing, many people feel things are being done to them rather than with them – whether that is the loss of children’s centres, the neglect of streets and pavements, or major developments imposed without meaningful local input. A present councillor is one who treats visibility as part of the job, not an optional extra.
“Listening, responding and fixing
“Residents deserve to feel listened to, not ignored. Yet the record of Ealing Council at the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman shows a pattern of people being forced to fight, often for months or years, before basic problems are put right. In 2024–25 the Ombudsman handled 166 complaints about Ealing; of the 22 fully investigated, 16 were upheld, and only 6 per cent of upheld cases were sorted out by the council before the Ombudsman had to step in – around half the rate of comparable authorities.
“A good councillor behaves in the opposite way. They acknowledge complaints quickly, chase officers for answers, and keep residents updated. They see a complaint not as an irritation but as vital feedback on what is going wrong. When a homeless mother has to send more than 50 unanswered emails, or a leaseholder lives with extreme mould for six years before anyone acts, that is not an individual oversight – it is a profound failure of accountability. A serious councillor treats each of these cases as unacceptable and learns from them.
“Genuine consultation, not box-ticking
“Too often, what passes for “consultation” in Ealing feels like a rubber stamp on decisions already made. Residents are invited to comment on cuts, closures or big developments long after the real choices have been taken. In Southall, we have seen a decade of glossy frameworks and “resets”, consultations that talk of partnership and community voice while fly‑tipping, housing failure and health inequalities worsen on the ground.
“Good councillors insist that consultations meet basic standards: they start early enough to shape proposals; they clearly set out the options; and they report back honestly on what residents said and why a particular decision was taken. Ealing Community Independents have committed to following the Gunning Principles of consultation – including consulting at a formative stage and giving conscientious consideration to what people say – and to reversing the recent increase in the number of signatures required for petitions to be debated by the council.
“Residents should never have to fight simply to be heard. They should be able to see their input reflected in changed plans – whether that is on waste services, new housing schemes, or the future of cherished community facilities.
“Community‑rooted, not party‑whipped
“In a one‑party borough, the danger is that councillors answer upwards to party leaders and national machines instead of outwards to local people. When most decisions are taken in a tight leadership circle, and backbench councillors are expected to vote with the whip regardless of residents’ views, accountability suffers.
“A good councillor is willing to say no to their own party when it is wrong – on closing children’s centres, for example, or pressing ahead with policies that clearly damage the most deprived communities. They work with trade unions, community groups and small businesses, not against them, and they report back regularly through ward meetings, newsletters and surgeries that are genuinely open. Their loyalty is to the people who elected them, not to the Chief Whip.
“How Ealing Community Independents would do it differently
“Ealing Community Independents was set up precisely because too many residents feel unheard, ignored or taken for granted. We are a people‑led local party committed to putting residents’ voices and choices first, in every neighbourhood from Acton to Southall.
“Our councillors, if elected on 7 May, will be:
“Directly accountable to residents and local party members, with regular open meetings in every ward and a clear expectation that councillors report back on how they vote and why.
“Accessible and responsive, with a pledge to respond to written contact within five days and to maintain a visible presence through street surgeries, door‑knocking, online and in‑person meetings, and regular newsletters.
“Serious about meaningful consultation, committed to the Gunning Principles, restoring ward forums, and reversing the barriers Ealing Labour has put in residents’ way when they try to petition the council.
“Independent in practice, not just in name, free from national party whips and willing to stand up against cuts, closures and asset sell‑offs that harm our communities.
“We have seen, in painstaking detail, how Ealing’s current leadership has allowed complaints to drift, consultations to become performative, and decisions to be shaped more by developers’ priorities than by residents’ needs. We believe Ealing deserves better – councillors who are present, responsive and rooted in the communities they serve, and who put people before party every single time.
Full coverage of the Ealing Council local elections and candidates standing, can be found here.
