Greens accuse Labour of ‘stifling democracy’ over Scrutiny Committee allocations

Despite an increase in their number, Green councillors on Brighton & Hove City Council will not receive an extra seat on a key scrutiny committee.

Since winning an extra council seat at the Brunswick & Adelaide by-election in Hove on 4 July, Green councillors have been due to receive an extra seat on the council’s committees.

Despite multiple attempts to meet with the Labour administration and discuss where this allocation should be, Greens were told yesterday (19 September) that their new seat will be on the non-political Licensing Committee, rather than the Place Overview and Scrutiny Committee (OSC) which helps to oversee the wider performance of the Council.

Greens claim the move is a politically-motivated one, designed to avoid proper scrutiny from the official opposition to the Labour administration.

Currently, Greens have just one seat on the Place OSC – having a second would give them enough councillors to put forward Notices of Motion and propose amendments to items on the agenda, giving them a louder voice and more opportunities to drive the Committee’s agenda.

Earlier this year, Labour changed the council’s governance system from Committee to Cabinet, putting decision-making powers in the hands of 10 Labour Cabinet Members despite making no reference to this in their local election manifesto.

As part of this process, two ‘Overview and Scrutiny’ Committees – ‘Place’ and ‘People’ – were created to scrutinise Cabinet Member decisions.

Green councillor Steve Davis for Preston Park

Steve Davis, Leader of Green Group said: “This is a clear attempt by the Labour administration to stifle democracy and shut out opposition voices. Their switch to the less democratic Cabinet system earlier this year had no mandate from residents, and now they are trying to avoid proper scrutiny by blocking opposition members from the very committees that are supposed to keep the administration in check.”

“It’s more obvious than ever that Brighton & Hove Labour reflect the increasingly authoritarian nature of their national party and are not remotely interested in proper debate and scrutiny. Despite what [Labour council leader] Cllr Sankey may think, people in this city who didn’t vote Labour still deserve their voices to be heard, and to be properly represented within this council.”

Notes

One of Labour’s own councillors, Joy Robinson, is currently under investigation after appearing to brag about Greens having “no voice” in the council, in a now-deleted tweet: https://www.brightonandhovenews.org/2024/09/18/here-are-the-reasons-for-the-latest-complaints-about-councillors/

Seats on committees are allocated based on the number of councillors of a political party. Prior to the by-election on the 4 July, Greens were allocated eight out of the total 63 seats – their win at the by-election increased that number to nine.

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