Ealing Lib Dems accuse Labour-run Ealing Council of complacency

Ealing Liberal Democrats have accused Labour-run Ealing Council of becoming “complacent” after the local authority approved its new four-year council plan at a full council meeting on Tuesday (30 June 2026).

The meeting was the first full council meeting since the local elections on 7 May 2026. Ealing Council’s official opposition Liberal Democrats, along with the Ealing Conservatives and Ealing Green Party, voted against the plan. The Liberal Democrats said it failed to address residents’ concerns over housing, children’s services, street cleanliness, crime and anti-social behaviour.

During the debate, Ealing Liberal Democrat leader Councillor Gary Malcolm questioned how children would receive the best start in life following the closure of 10 children’s centres in the borough. He also raised concerns about shortages of social care places, reduced leisure services, including swimming pools and libraries, and what he described as increasingly dirty streets where weeds, crime and anti-social behaviour were becoming more prevalent.

Councillor Malcolm also criticised the council’s housing record, referring to the Housing Ombudsman’s Tier 1 investigation into the authority’s housing service, concerns over repairs and the collapse of Broadway Living, the council-owned housing company.

New Walpole ward Councillor Matt Mellor used his maiden speech to call for greater investment in West Ealing, saying residents wanted action on crime, anti-social behaviour, street cleanliness and improvements to Walpole Park, Lammas Park and Deans Gardens. He also suggested introducing community skips to help tackle fly-tipping and urged the council to commit more officer time and funding to improving West Ealing over the next four years.

Meanwhile, newly elected Ealing Broadway ward Councillor Adam Keenan said residents had highlighted the need for more affordable housing, a cleaner street environment and the reopening of a 24-hour police station in Acton.

Councillor Malcolm said: “The Liberal Democrats are disappointed at this lost opportunity to go further with service delivery across the borough with a focus on issues which matter to residents.

“They have hidden the collapse of Broadway Living, a key mechanism for house building, until after the election. They missed out on £100 million from developers which could have been used for community facilities.

“Ealing Labour have run out of ideas and are complacent.”

EALING.NEWS asked Ealing Council for a comment in response to the Liberal Democrats’ criticism. The council referred EALING.NEWS to a post by Ealing Council leader Councillor Peter Mason published on its Around Ealing website on Thursday (2 July 2026) alongside its four year plan document.

In the post, Councillor Mason said the new council plan translated the promises made at the local elections into “a four-year plan of action” and described it as “a promise to you, our residents. It sets out the things that we are trying to achieve. We are making a commitment that this is where we are focusing our efforts. And we want you to hold us to account for delivering it.”

He said the plan set out nine missions for the next four years, including tackling crime and anti-social behaviour, securing more genuinely affordable housing, addressing the climate emergency, ensuring every child has the best start in life, enabling people to live healthier lives and bringing investment to communities across the borough.