Clause 7 - Functions of overview and scrutiny committees
Health and Social Care Bill
12:45 pm
Mr John Denham (Minister of State, Department of Health; Southampton, Itchen, Labour)
If I have been listening properly, there is broad agreement about what the proper outcome should be. We shall touch on similar issues when we debate clause 9 and related amendments. The Government's view is that the lead responsibility for the scrutiny process should lie with social services authorities, which is the intention underlying the Conservative amendment. However, we recognise that there is a case for involving district councils in the process.
New clause 9 will enable us to make regulations for the joint working between social services authorities that will sometimes be necessary. That might be relevant, for instance, in my neck of the woods, where Southampton is the social services authority for my constituency, and Hampshire covers the constituency of the hon. Member for New Forest, West. The provision would also cover the involvement of district councils. There will obviously be situations involving primary care trusts, reconfigurations and things of that sort, where a district council input to the scrutiny process would be essential. There is no need for amendment No. 245. The existing wording of the Bill reflects a common intention.
Amendment No. 226 puts district councils on the same basis as social services authorities. That is not our intention, and new clause 9, when we come to it, will, I hope, be seen to deal adequately with the point made by the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam.