Apologies were received from Councillors Busuttil, Byrne, Mahfouz, Sabiers and L. Wall.

The Mayor commenced by announcing the death of former Councillor Mr Joginder Singh Saroe who served on the council from 2002-2006

On a happier note she announced and congratulated Councillor Bassam Mahfouz on his new baby boy, Elliott, born on 16^th December weighing in at 3.59 kilos, little brother for Alexander.

She also congratulated Councillors Ray and Lauren Wall of the birth of their Granddaughter.  

Finally she congratulated Councillor Manro on his birthday and thanked him for bringing in samosas to contribute to the gathering in the parlour after this meeting. .

The Mayor went on  to record her sincere  thanks to all the members who had supported the Mayor’s charity in the last few months : There was a lively evening with  a great crowd at the New Inn, and the event at Pillars sold out; even more tickets could have been sold if there had been the capacity. At Pillars the singers and musicians were superb and really made the evening. There were also huge crowds also at the Abbey on Saturday night so this should boost the charity

The Mayor also said that she had been talking to some of the businesses doing well in our Borough particularly in terms of housing and regen who appeared to be touched by the issue of homelessness - it is difficult to close one’s eyes to it – and seem keen to be supportive. A2 Dominion for instance presented a cheque when I did the formal opening of their social enterprise cafe last week, Mr Pathak and I hosted a free lunch for the homeless on a Saturday when their centre is closed and St George and Barclays have promised to help.  

She reported that schools are very supportive. She had attended events at St Benedict’s and St Vincent’s who had both been very busy working for the charity. The university (UWL) and their students are also being incredibly helpful. Student volunteers even turned out last Saturday with collection boxes at the Acton Christmas fair. The manager of the charity tells me he is quite overwhelmed by the response from the community which he tells me is unprecedented; he believed it was a result of the coverage and awareness rising resulting in a huge increase in donations.

Finally the Mayor thanked the Councillors not just for attending her events and the generous donations but also those who were accompanying her at various engagements. These included the care home visits, the Community hubs, the Panjabi celebration of womanhood, the winter festival of the Southall lions, the Log Cabin, Somali achievement, Acton Christmas, the Abbey on Saturday night, Ealing symphony orchestra concerts and many other events and she looked forward to this continuing into the New Year.

a). Mr Firmin of Lombard Court W3 presented a petition requesting the removal of raised planters outside Lombard Court.

The petition read

“We, the residents of Lombard Court, Crown Street W3, and residents of adjacent properties petition the Ealing Council to remove the two raised planters located outside Lombard Court and trees to be relocated.

 Reasons for wanting removal are it is frequently used by youths who are engaging in anti-social behaviour such as drug dealing/taking, drinking alcohol, litter, intimidation of residents and causing a lot of noise disturbing the residents during the day and night”.

Councillor Dheer responded to the petition

I thank the residents of Lombard Court for bringing this matter to our attention and I am sorry to hear that anti-social behaviour is causing distress to local residents.

I can assure residents that councillors and officers will investigate this matter thoroughly to ensure that the best possible outcome is achieved. We must first begin to properly look at this situation to ascertain if removing the planters will make a positive difference to the situation or if the cause of the problem lies elsewhere.

As ever, there are a number of departments involved in the management of these planters and several issues at play when discussing removal. Officers from community safety are currently reviewing the casework from Lombard Court with the landlord A2D and highways and parks officers are reviewing how changes to the planters might impact ASB, the trees and traffic management. 

b). Mr Simba  of Acton W3 presented a petition stating

Five of the signatories to this petition have been trading in Acton for a combined total of over 60 years.

We call upon Ealing council, when the operator for Acton Market is reviewed, to ensure that traders complement the shopping offer rather than unfairly compete with long established local business.

Councillor Bell responded to the petition

• Acton Market is managed by Action West London, under a licence agreement with Ealing Council, and has been in operation since 2006.
• The market was set up in response to numerous requests for a market: to create a more vibrant environment, encourage visitor footfall and create employment opportunities for local people.
• There was a notably positive response for the market to be set up following an extensive public consultation process with local residents and businesses carried out in 2003
• Over the 10 years the market has been operating the council has not received any complaints that the market offer has been in direct competition with surrounding businesses, however we take on board that due to the nature of the market trader environment, the offer may have varied/diversified over this time period.
• The current licence agreement states that the market is to be operated in such a way that compliments local businesses.
• Council officers will be undertaking a review of Acton market and the licence agreement with Action West London in 2017 and as part of this process will look at the current offer and impact on local traders. To help feed into this process it would be useful to have more information on the businesses that have signed the petition and the specific concerns. We would be grateful if businesses could provide the following:
  • Business name, address, contact name/information
  • Type of business
  • How long have you been trading in Acton?
  • How is Acton Market in direct competition with your business?

Mr Noori, who was present with Mr Simba responded to the response.

c). Mr Lennon of Birkbeck Avenue W13 presented a petition stating

“Put the safety and wellbeing of the children of Little Ealing and Mount Carmel Schools before a negligible cost saving of withdrawing the role (of lollipop lady).

Councillor Bell responded to the petition

As you may be aware the council is currently facing unprecedented reductions to budget, which will leave us with less than ½ of our budget four years ago.  The council are now required to find an additional £96million of savings by 2019.

As such we have had to review our provision of School Crossing Patrol sites and have made the difficult decision to propose removing officers from the remaining locations. Three of the four other sites are now being funded directly by the schools themselves.  At this location we have invested to ensure that crossing points have been made safer.

This particular site has two elevated zebra crossing with flashing lights, ‘Children’ and ‘School’ warning signage, pedestrian guard rails and road narrowing points all designed to slow traffic and increase levels of safety.

We are exploring options, where there is support from schools to retain the post, through initiatives including business based sponsorship arrangements and community based volunteering schemes, but regrettably the council can no longer continue to fund the service at the sites identified.

The council remains committed to helping schools manage road safety and will continue to provide advice and enforcement of irresponsible parking on zig-zag lines outside schools.

The current proposals are anticipated to be implemented in April 2017.  We are currently working in Partnership with the affected schools to establish their own crossing arrangements.

Mr Lennon responded to the response

Councillor Proud presented a petition stating

“We the undersigned, call on Ealing Council to ensure that car parking is supplied for the flats planned on the Gurnell Leisure site at a ratio of one car parking space per  flat, otherwise the cars acquired by the owners / tenants will cause serious car parking problems in the immediate vicinity.

1. Councillor Mann asked the portfolio holder for Finance , performance and Customer Services

    

   Will the portfolio holder update us on the latest financial settlement for Ealing Council?

               Councillor Johnson replied

   It isn’t particularly good news. For this year we had significant funding cuts set out in the four year settlement of 2016-17, including the stepped reduction of RSG and top-up grant from £77.8m in 2016/17 to £49.14m in 2019/20.

   We have had our new homes bonus cut and while we will receive a one off Adult social Care Support Grant, which is helpful, but it is only for one year and still leaves us with a shortfall.

   We’ll also take another hit on public health, £600,000, which may not seem like much but will create further difficulties.

   While I was happy not to see Boris Johnson as PM, I do hope that Theresa May doesn’t become the wicked witch going forward.

   Councillors Mann and G. Stafford asked supplementary questions

    

2. Councillor Millican asked the portfolio holder for Children and Young People

    

   Ealing Council has set a target to find 28 new foster carers this year. Will you join us in a cross- party initiative for each of the 23 wards to use best endeavours to identify one or two new foster carers this year, which I suggested at the recent Corporate Parent meeting?

    

   Councillor Rai replied

    

   I thank Cllr Millican for his generous invitation and I would like to reciprocate by inviting him to support our campaign that we are launching for adoption and foster carers that will help us to recruit as many new foster carers as possible.

   Councillors Millican and Manro asked supplementary questions

    

3. Councillor Raza asked the portfolio holder for Health and Adult Services

    

   Can the portfolio holder update us on the Council’s position on the ‘Sustainability Transformation Plan’ (STP), given the publication of the ‘Implementation Business Case (IMBC).

   Councillor Tailor replied

   The Council and the NHS have a strong record of integrating health and social care services in order to improve the health and wellbeing of residents. Some notable examples of this are:

   • An effective Health and Wellbeing Board chaired by the Leader of the Council, Cllr Bell.
   • Integrated teams for commissioning, learning disabilities, children with additional needs and mental health
   • Homeward – an joint intermediate care service supporting and treating people in their own homes
   • Care coordinators working across the borough to support people with long term health conditions – linked to GP practices

     The Council supports many of the aims of the STP and will continue to engage positively with the NHS on areas of shared agreement in the best interests of local people.

     However, the STP proposal also incorporate the proposals previously put forward by the NHS under the Shaping a Healthier Future programme in 2012 to reform acute hospital provision in north west London including the downgrading of Ealing and Charing Cross to ‘local’ hospitals, closure of A&E provision and a reduction of 500 acute hospital beds across north west London. The Council has been firmly opposed to these proposals as it does not believe that they meet the needs of local people.

     The Implementation Business Case was published recently by the NHS and confirms that the intention is for Ealing to be downgraded to a local hospital by 2022.  Ealing Council has confirmed that it will hold a public meeting at Ealing Town Hall on Wednesday, 15 February 2017 at 7pm. Residents are invited to attend to find out more about what it means for local health services including those provided in hospitals as well as planned improvements to primary care. The council will then be responding to the NHS early in the new year.

      

     Councillors Raza and Theresa Mullins asked supplementary questions

4. Councillor Sumner asked the portfolio holder for Transport, Environment and Leisure

    

   How much extra money will an Ealing resident have to pay for an Annual Zone 1-3 Travel card from January 2017?

   Councillor Bell responded on behalf of Councillor Mahfouz

   £28.

   Councillors Sumner and Camadoo asked supplementary questions

5. Councillor Malcolm asked the Leader of the council

    

   Could the Leader of the Council please update Councillors on the current status for Ealing, concerning the ‘Fairtrade Town’ and ‘London Living Wage initiatives?

    

   Councillor Bell replied

    

   We remain a Fairtrade town and an accredited London Living Wage Borough.

    

   Councillors Malcolm and Proud asked supplementary questions

    

6. Councillor Ahmed asked the portfolio holder for Health and Adults Services

    

   Given the Prime Minister’s comments, can the portfolio holder update us on the performance of adult social care in Ealing?

    

   Councillor Tailor replied

    

   Adult Social Care in Ealing performs well compared with other authorities.  All of our registered in house provider services are rated as “good” by the CQC.

   Ealing Council makes fewer placements in residential and nursing care than comparator councils and supports more people to live independent lives at home.

   Our Reablement Service is also extremely effective at preventing people being readmitted to hospital and avoiding the need to go into a care home. More than 93% of people who receive this service are still at home 91 days afterwards. This is one of the best performing services in the country.

   We have also increased access for people in need of care and support to personal budgets, offering greater choice and control over the care they receive.  Over 86% of people in Ealing received their social care through a personal budget in the last year.

   An independent Peer Review of Adult Social Care conducted under the LGA/ADASS programme found that Ealing was leading the way in integrated services between the NHS and Social Care

   Councillors Ahmed and Conti asked supplementary question

    

7. Councillor Young asked the Leader of the Council

Will the portfolio holder ensure that the Community users of Southall Town Hall will be allocated suitable alternative accommodation?

Councillor Bell replied

Yes.

Councillor Conti moved the motion

Councillor Sumner seconded the motion

 Councillor Steed moved an amendment to the motion

Councillor Malcolm seconded the amendment.

Councillor Kelly responded

Councillor Theresa Mullins responded

Councillor Mason responded

Councillor Sumner responded

Councillor Blacker responded

Councillor Proud responded

Councillor Steed Summed up

Councillor Conti summed up

After a vote the amendment was lost

After a vote the motion was lost

Councillor Ball moved the motion

Councillor Malcolm seconded the motion

Councillor Manro moved an amendment to the motion

Councillor Johnson seconded the amendment

Councillor G. Stafford responded

Councillor Hynes responded

Councillor Johnson responded

Councillor Millican responded

Councillor Conlan responded

Councillor Young responded

Councillor Mason responded

Councillor Proud responded

Councillor Manro summed up

Councillor Ball summed up

After a vote the amendment was agreed.

Three members rose to call for a recorded vote.

For:

Councillors, Anand, Aslam, Bagha, Ball, Bell, Blacker, Camadoo, Cogan, Conlan, D. Crawford, K. Crawford, Dhami, Dheer,  Dhindsa, Gavan, Gordon, Gulaid, Hynes, Johnson, Jones, Kang, Kaur – Dheer, Kelly, Khan, Kholi,  Mahmood, Malcolm, G. Mann, R. Mann, Manro, Martin, Mason, McCartan, Midha, Mohan, Murray, Murtagh, Nagpal, Padda, Rai, Raza, Rodgers, Sharma, Shaw, Steed, Summers, Tailor,  R. Wall, and Woodroofe

Against:

Councillors, Conti, Dabrowska, Seema Kumar, Millican, Joy Morrissey, Theresa Mullins, Proud, Roz Reece, A. Stafford, G. Stafford, Sumner and Young

Absent

 Councillors Ahmed and Ahmed-Shaikh,

The motion read

“This Council reaffirms its belief as agreed on 12th April that both Ealing and the United Kingdom would be better staying within the European Union, rather than leaving.

This Council notes that in the referendum on 23rd June, over 60% of Ealing residents voted to remain in the European Union.

This Council calls upon the Government to act swiftly to reassure all citizens of other EU states living in Ealing that they will be allowed to stay in the UK.

This Council resolves to continue to fight for the best deal for Ealing residents should Brexit go ahead in line with the overwhelming majority who voted to stay a part of the Union.

Councillor Johnson moved the report including the corrigenda

Councillor Gordon seconded the report

There was a recorded vote

For:

Councillors Ahmed, Anand, Aslam, Bagha, Bell, Blacker,  Camadoo, Cogan, Conlan, D. Crawford, K. Crawford, Conti, Dabrowska, Dhami, Dheer,  Dhindsa, Gavan, Gordon, Gulaid, Hynes, Johnson, Jones, Kang, Kaur – Dheer Kelly, Khan, Kholi, Seema Kumar,  Mahmood, G. Mann, R. Mann, Manro, Martin, Mason, McCartan, Midha, Millican, Mohan, Joy Morrissey, Theresa Mullins Murray, Murtagh, Nagpal, Padda, Proud, Rai, Raza, Roz Reece, Rodgers,  Sharma, Shaw, A. Stafford, G. Stafford, Summers, Sumner Tailor,  R. Wall, Woodroofe and Young.,

Against:

Councillors Ball, Malcolm and Steed

Absent

 Councillors Ahmed and Ahmed-Shaikh.

Council agreed to

1. Approve the current Local Council Tax Reduction Scheme to continue for the financial year 2017/18. 

Councillor Johnson moved the report

Councillor G. Stafford seconded the report.

Council agreed unanimously to

• Note the new arrangements for appointing external auditors.

  Note the Audit committee’s recommendation on 29 November 2016 to accept the Public Sector Audit Appointments’ (PSAA) invitation to ‘opt in’ to the sector led body option for the appointment of external auditors for 5 financial years commencing 1 April 2018.

• Accept the Public Sector Audit Appointments’ (PSAA) invitation to ‘opt in’ to the sector led body option for the appointment of external auditors for 5 financial years commencing 1 April 2018.

Councillor Johnson moved the report

Councillor G. Stafford seconded the report.

Council agreed unanimously to

1. Note the Treasury Management activities and performance against targets for the six months to 30 September 2016.
2. Note the Council’s investment balance of £195.932m as at 30 September 2016 of which £140.302m was invested in other Local Authorities (set out in Appendix 1).
3. Note the Council’s position on prudential indicators (set out in Appendix2).
4.  Note the Council’s current lending list (set out in confidential Appendix 4).

Councillor Gordon moved the report

Councillor Roz Reece seconded the report

Council agreed unanimously to

1.  Approve the constitution amendments set out in the appendices
2. Note that the Borough Planner will provide an oral update to CRG on the impact of the changes made to Planning Committee arrangements earlier this year, and
3. Agree that the “new” Planning Committee working arrangements continue
4. Agree that proposals be developed by the Director of Legal and Democratic Services to adjust the respective responsibilities of Planning Committee and Regulatory Committee, as set out in para. 2.2.4 below.

Councillor Gordon moved the appointments

Councillor Roz Reece seconded the appointments

Licensing Committee - Councillor Kelly to replace Councillor Summers

Shadow Cabinet - Councillor Conti to replace Councillor Joy Morrissey for Health & Adult Social Services

Health & Well Being Board - Councillor Conti to replace Councillor Joy Morrissey