The London Assembly voted 19 to 3 to stand with Jewish Londoners and 20 to 1 for Grenfell justice on 5 November. Here is what all eight motions ask for.
The London Assembly voted by 19 to 3 on Thursday to stand with London’s Jewish community, one of eight motions members passed at City Hall on 5 November. The others ask for justice over Grenfell, more crematorium space for faith communities, a pause on floating bus stops and a look at cheaper travel for unpaid carers.
For Barnet, home to the Golders Green, Hendon and Edgware communities served by the groups the council made Freemen of the Borough this week, the first motion is the one most readers will notice. The others are London-wide, but several touch services people here use every day.
The Jewish community motion
The motion condemns “the recent Green Party motion defining Zionism as a form of racism” and says it expresses “deep concern at the harm such rhetoric risks causing to London’s Jewish community.”
“At a time of already heighted tension within the Jewish community, it risks fostering division, deepening insecurity and lending legitimacy to extreme antisemitic attitudes,” the agreed text reads. It goes on: “Jewish Londoners have the same right as every Londoner to live openly, practise their faith and participate in public life free from fear, prejudice or intimidation.”
It calls on the Mayor “to reaffirm his commitment to tackling antisemitism, engage directly with Jewish community organisations, and ensure that every Jewish person feels safe, valued and confident in calling London home.”
Susan Hall AM, who proposed it, said: “The ‘Zionism is Racism’ policy of the Green Party risks being a harmful rhetoric in British politics that must be opposed wholeheartedly. I want to thank the Members of the Assembly who today have backed this motion to make clear to Britain’s Jewish community that we stand with them in face of antisemitism.”
The vote came at the same plenary where the Mayor and the Met Commissioner faced questions on policing, which we previewed last week. Security for the community has been a running thread at City Hall: in October the London Fire Brigade asked for £10m in national security funding after this spring’s arson attacks on London’s Jewish community, which destroyed Hatzola ambulances.
Grenfell: charging decisions promised before June 2027
The motion the Assembly media office sent us first was on Grenfell, agreed by 20 votes to 1. It welcomes the Metropolitan Police “submitting all files on the Grenfell Tower fire to the Crown Prosecution Service to allow them to make charging decisions”, and “the Crown Prosecution Service’s commitment to making the charging decisions before the 10th anniversary of the devastating fire in June 2027.”
“Nearly 10 years ago, 72 innocent Londoners passed away in tragic and avoidable circumstances,” it reads. “The bereaved, families and survivors have waited far too long for the justice they deserve, and this must be delivered as swiftly possible and without any further delays.”
James Small-Edwards AM, who proposed it, said: “Almost 10 years on from the Grenfell Tower fire, there still hasn’t been justice. Those who lost their lives, the survivors, their families and friends, the first responders and the entire community deserve justice and accountability. The wait has been far too long.”
“Londoners also need to know that the lessons of Grenfell have been learned, and that the necessary action is being taken to ensure a tragedy like this can never happen again,” he said. “Today, the Assembly sent a clear message: we stand side-by-side with the Grenfell community and want to see justice and accountability delivered.”
Crematoria for Hindu, Sikh, Jain and Buddhist families
Agreed 20 to 0, the crematorium motion says London has over half a million Hindu, Sikh, Jain and Buddhist residents and that existing crematoria “do not provide the space, facilities or arrangements needed to accommodate particular religious practices and larger gatherings.” It asks the Mayor to recognise the gap in the London Plan and to “encourage boroughs to identify appropriate sites” for new or bigger crematoria where there is demonstrated need, which would include Barnet.
Krupesh Hirani AM, who proposed it, said: “Every family deserves to say goodbye to their loved ones in a manner that is consistent with their religious practices. No one should have to navigate avoidable barriers during a time of grief.”
Windrush compensation beyond the Caribbean
Agreed with 20 votes for, the Windrush motion says some Londoners of South Asian and West African heritage “mistakenly believe the schemes apply only to people from the Caribbean”, and cites a 2019 Public Accounts Committee estimate that around 160,000 non-Caribbean Commonwealth nationals across the UK could be missing out. Hina Bokhari OBE AM said: “We want the Mayor to be much more proactive in working with communities to identify those who have been overlooked.”
Buses, carers and the Tube
- Floating bus stops, where a cycle lane runs between the pavement and the stop: agreed 17 to 3, the motion asks the Mayor to pause new ones on the TfL Road Network, and to pause borough funding for them, “until a safe design has been established.” It cites a Telegraph count in which only 33 of 397 cyclists at three central London crossings gave way to pedestrians. Keith Prince AM said: “Every Londoner should be able to get on and off a bus without fearing for their safety.”
- Unpaid carers: agreed 14 to 1, the carers motion asks TfL to model a Carers’ Travelcard, free or discounted travel for people on Carer’s Allowance or the carer element of Universal Credit, and expresses “disappointment that the Mayor has decided not to carry out that assessment.” It says 29 per cent of London’s unpaid carers live in poverty, against 21 per cent of non-carers.
- Bakerloo line: agreed unanimously, the motion says the line had the worst performance of any Tube line in 2025-26, on trains in service since 1972, and that the Mayor had given 1 November 2026 as the deadline to add new trains to the Siemens contract without a long break in production.
- A20 speed limits: agreed 18 to 0, the Assembly repeated its call for an independent investigation into the temporary limits on the Sidcup by-pass between October 2023 and October 2024, after new information suggested the traffic order was invalid.
What it means for you
Motions set out the Assembly’s view and its asks of the Mayor; they do not change a policy on their own. If you care for someone and spend heavily on fares, the carers motion is the one to watch: the Mayor has so far declined the TfL assessment the Assembly wants. If you use a floating bus stop in Barnet, the pause would cover new stops, not ones already built. The motions as tabled are in the meeting’s motions report, the meeting can be watched on the Assembly’s webcast and YouTube, and the agreed versions are in the Assembly’s 5 November round-up.
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