YESTERDAY evening (May 10), Ealing Labour councillors voted to remove Julian Bell as leader during their AGM and replaced him with Peter Mason.

This means that apart from leader of Ealing Labour, cllr Mason will also become the leader of Ealing Council, effective from next Tuesday's (May 18) full council AGM.

In 2018 he became Ealing's cabinet member for Housing, Planning & Transformation, before resigning from his post last September following a failed leadership bid.

The Southall Green councillor released a statement earlier today saying: "I am determined to demonstrate to the residents of our borough that Labour is on their side.

"Under my leadership, Ealing will be an open, inclusive and transparent council that engages and involves residents in tackling the big challenges we face.

"As we navigate the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, our efforts will be focused on supporting an economic recovery grounded in bringing well paid, good jobs back to our borough, re-greening our neighbourhoods and relentlessly tackling poverty and inequality.

"As someone who grew up in a single parent family on a council estate in the dying days of the Thatcher government, I'm proud to have been elected to lead our borough and to make change happen for those who most need it, just as the last Labour government did for me."

Deirdre Costigan was elected Ealing Labour's deputy leader and will become the Council's first openly lesbian deputy leader next Tuesday.

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Bassam Mahfouz will continue to serve as Ealing Labour's second deputy leader.

A new council cabinet will be appointed in the next week and the new leadership team will formally take office on May 18.