Claire, have they actually removed it or is it just in the pipeline?What you may not know is that some years ago Ealing Council drew up an comprehensive list of assets which it could cash in if required. The pretext, as usual, was cuts from central government although there always seemed to be plenty of cash about for spurious ‘consultations’ (for example £15k on a library reorganisation plan that was ultimately adopted despite overwhelming opposition).Every park, public building and amenity was included, with each one allocated a potential repurposing, mainly housing. In Carlton Road, for example, the old community centre has been replaced with expensive housing. Every time such an asset is lost it is never replaced, and councils are notoriously bad at negotiating anything so this land is practically given away. Removing protections is part of the process of ultimate disposal.If you want to see where Ealing is heading look no further than the appointment of Tony Clements as Chief Executive last year. He left his Director of Place post in Ealing in 2019 with a £74,000 pay-off. Theoretically he should have been ineligible for the CE post under the terms of his severance (though mystery surrounds exactly why he departed). But he is Peter Mason’s pal and, crucially, his enforcer when it comes to pushing through building projects. They worked closely when Mason was housing cabinet member, and enjoyed the odd jolly to MIPIM in Cannes at the developers’ expense.Clements’ return prompted a raft of resignations among higher management echelons at the council, giving some indication of his popularity there.There is a plan (and not the one published last year that has rightly been rubbished). Mason is politically ambitious and wants to prove himself as a go-ahead young star in Labour with an eye on Virendra Sharma’s parliamentary seat in Southall.There will be the usual spin about affordable homes (80 percent of market value isn’t really affordable for many who really need decent housing) and there will be more sites flogged off for development. I suspect the parks will be the last to go as they are so visible and well used, although smaller ones in the borough such as Bramley Gardens next to Northfields station could be sacrificed because the locations are attractive and they will say, hey there’s another park down the road.This won’t change if Labour form the next government. The likes of Mason, and his counterpart in Hounslow, have a taste for property development now and shoving several thousand more people into council tax farms is just too tempting.
Simon Hayes ● 1148d