13 May 2024 In March, Labour-run Brighton & Hove City Council proposed to merge the Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee (HOSC) into a ‘People’ Scrutiny Committee, under new governance arrangements.
Following objections from Green Councillors, they quietly reversed their proposals and HOSC is to remain as its own committee.
The purpose of HOSC is to scrutinise citywide health issues through regular engagement with the NHS. In a letter to the committee on the 10 April 2024[1], Cllr Raphael Hill pointed out the huge remit that the ‘People’ committee would be tasked with, questioning whether it would also be able to adequately carry out the responsibilities of HOSC.
Representatives of Healthwatch and the Brighton and Hove Older People’s Council, who sit as non-voting co-optees on HOSC, also put pressure on Labour to keep the committee separate.
Councillor Raphael Hill: Labour “made no mention of the plan in their manifesto and have refused to carry out a referendum or even a consultation – clearly, they should stick to a committee system which works well locally.”
Green Party Councillor Raphael Hill, a member of HOSC, said: “Lumping HOSC in with a committee that deals with schools, equalities, and anything else people-related would have simply meant it would have been disregarded, so I am glad Labour saw sense here. However, there is still a broader issue that Labour has no mandate for their Cabinet system proposal.
“They made no mention of the plan in their manifesto and have refused to carry out a referendum or even a consultation – clearly, they should stick to a Committee system which works well locally.
“By contrast, in 2011 the first Green administration made a manifesto commitment to change the council to a Committee system, a promise they delivered on a year later.
“I will be keen to continue my work on HOSC amid reports of a toxic bullying culture at the Royal Sussex County Hospital.’’
Notes
[1] Cllr Hill’s letter to HOSC: https://democracy.brighton-hove.gov.uk/documents/s198030/Letter%20to%20Health%20Overview%20and%20Scrutiny%20Committee.pdf
[2] Webcast of the most recent meeting of HOSC, with Cllr Hill’s letter discussed at 9:25: https://aisapps.sonicfoundry.com/AuditelScheduler/Player/Index/?id=75beeaf6-f537-4fe8-b411-39df40ddac89&presID=329407a3df1448538df171f5467482b81d
