The Ealing Council meeting scheduled for 21 October 2025 included discussion of the Audit Committee Annual Report, changes to the constitution, and a treasury management update. Councillors were also expected to discuss motions on national insurance contributions and the private rental sector. In addition, members of the public and councillors had the opportunity to ask questions.

Treasury Management

The council was scheduled to review its treasury management activities for the financial year ending 31 March 2025, according to the Treasury Management Outturn 2024-25 report. Treasury management involves:

the management of the council's investments and cash flows; its banking, money market and capital market transactions; the effective control of the risks associated with those activities; and the pursuit of optimum performance consistent with those risks.

The report noted that all treasury management activities were carried out within the parameters set by the council, and all investments were made within agreed limits. The council's investment balance as of 31 March 2025 was £417.056m, with £344.000m invested with the Debt Management Office (DMO). The council was also asked to approve a revised Minimum Revenue Provision (MRP) Policy, as detailed in Appendix 2 - Minimum Revenue Provision Policy Statement. The proposed changes to the MRP Policy clarify the treatment of loans to subsidiaries as capital expenditure requiring MRP to be set aside. They also introduce a provision for a voluntary revenue charge where any impairment or adverse change in repayment ability is identified.

Audit Committee Annual Report

The Audit Committee Annual Report provided an update on the work and performance of the Audit Committee in 2025/26. The report included a review of the Audit Committee's compliance against the CIPFA - Audit Committees in Local Authorities and Police Position Statement 2022 (the Standard). The review found that the committee was 98% compliant with the position statement. The two areas where the committee did not fully comply with best practice were:

• The need for the Committee to report to Council annually.
• The Committee does not hold separate private meetings with only internal and external audit present.

Changes to the Constitution

The council was asked to consider changes to the constitution, as outlined in the Changes to the Constitution report. The proposed changes included:

• Granting the Pension Board and Pension Fund Panel the authority to appoint their own non-councillor members.
• Adding the Chief Whip to the different panels of the employment panel.

Motions for Debate

Two motions were put forward for debate: one from the opposition group and one from the majority group.

Opposition Motion

The opposition motion focused on the impact of national government tax and business rates decisions on the local economy. The motion noted that:

• Employers' National Insurance contributions (NICs) would increase by 1.2 percentage points from 6 April 2025.
• The business rates relief for retail, hospitality and leisure would be cut from 75 per cent to 40 per cent from 1 April 2025.
• The Shadow Chancellor had committed a future Conservative-led Government to abolish business rates for high street shops and pubs.

The motion called on the council to:

• Cancel the Stop and Shop+ scheme and reinstate unregistered Stop and Shop parking.
• Ask the Leader of Ealing Council, Councillor Peter Mason, to write to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, condemning the harm being caused to local high streets in Ealing Borough and calling on the Chancellor to adopt the Conservative Party policy to abolish business rates for high street shops and pubs.

Majority Group Motion

The majority group motion concerned private renters' rights. The motion noted that:

• Many private renters in Ealing continue to face insecurity, unaffordable rents, and poor housing conditions.
• The Labour Government's Renters' Rights Bill will become law and abolish Section 21 'no-fault' evictions¹, apply the Decent Homes Standard[^3] to the private-rented sector, and make it illegal for landlords and agents to discriminate against prospective tenants in receipt of benefits or with children.

The motion resolved that the council would:

• Continue to deliver on its Council Plan commitment to introduce a Private Renters Association.
• Continue to plan for sufficient capacity to avoid delays in enforcement once the Bill becomes law.
• Ensure that Ealing residents in the private-rented sector will have access to the best possible standard of housing and not have to tolerate poor living conditions run by rogue landlords.

Public Questions

Two members of the public submitted questions to Councillor Paul Driscoll, Cabinet Member for Climate Action. Simon Piesse asked when the council would commit to a timeline of actions to improve pedestrian safety at the Zebra Crossing on the junction of Kent Gardens and Pitshanger Lane. Kieran O'Regan asked the Cabinet Member to commit to investigating the safety issues at the zebra crossing on Castlebar Road near the intersection with Montpelier Avenue and consider making improvements.

Councillor Questions

Councillors also submitted questions to various cabinet members. Councillor Fabio Conti asked Councillor Shital Manro, Cabinet member for Good Growth and New Homes, when the council would publish a full financial plan for building the new Gurnell Leisure Centre. Councillor Gary Malcolm asked Councillor Stephen Donnelly, Cabinet member for Inclusive Economy, whether he had changed his opinion on trialling EV charging gullies. Councillor Andrew Steed asked Councillor Jasbir Anand, Cabinet member for Tackling Crime and Antisocial Behaviour, for assurance that a review would require improvements for next year, regarding noise and disturbance from Gunnersbury Park events.