In his latest video message (above), council leader Julian Bell discusses the lockdown lifting restrictions, the London move to tier 2 and the council decision to rename a road in Southall. He also pays tribute to two former councillors who have passed away.

I want to begin by paying tribute to two former Ealing councillors who have sadly recently passed away due to non-COVID-19 reasons – Gurcharan Singh and Paul Woodgate. Both passed away before their time and unexpectedly, and both made significant contributions to the borough and Ealing Council. On behalf of residents of the borough, I would like to give my thanks for their service to the community and offer my sincere condolences to their families and friends.

Lockdown lifting

This week we’ve heard the news that London will be in tier 2 COVID-19 restrictions, when the national lockdown is lifted, after 2 December. This is good news, along with the news that Ealing’s weekly COVID-19 case numbers up to 22 November, have fallen by 21% to 202.7 per 100,000 of population. Putting us tenth in the London infection table.

I want however, to raise a note of caution. Firstly, the decision to put London and Ealing into tier 2 or tier 3, was a marginal one. Although overall rates of infection are coming down in London, in parts of the city, particularly the north east, case numbers are still rising, although, at a slower rate.

Because London is moving as one, all of us need to remain vigilant and follow the rules due to the high rate of infection in parts of the city, including within parts of our own borough.

Another reason for caution, is that there will be a review of the situation two weeks after the end of the national lockdown which could potentially put London into tier 3 before Christmas, if we do not follow the rules and keep control of the virus.

I would also ask everyone to keep following the national lockdown rules right up until 2 December when we will move to tier 2. We mustn’t lose that discipline and get ahead of ourselves.

Southall road to be renamed

Earlier in the year after the brutal killing of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter protests, I announced that Ealing Council would look at how our public realm would better reflect our diverse communities and that we would consult on changing the name of Havelock Road in Southall, to Guru Nanak Road, in celebration of the founder of Sikhism’s birthday. I am pleased to announce that this week the council has made this decision ahead of Guru Nakak Dev Ji’s birthday this coming Monday (30 November).

This is a positive celebration of the contribution our Sikh community make and Sikhism make to our wonderfully diverse and cohesive borough. Please celebrate safely, following the rules so that we can protect our loved ones and save lives.