Clause 4
Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Bill
4:30 pm
Alistair Burt (Shadow Minister (Communities and Local Government), Communities and Local Government; North East Bedfordshire, Conservative)
The Minister has made much of the fact that some authorities may have been thinking about the process for up to two years, and thus have had plenty of time to consult the public and give a sense of broad-based consent and so on. What about the situation that is not uncommon in some authorities that have submitted bids? Their bids have been brought forward at a late stage because of a bid made by another authority.
A borough that is thinking of going unitary may have done a lot of work and spoken to people within its area, but one of the knock-on consequences of the Bedford borough bid, for example, put a question mark over what would happen to the rest of the area. That prompted a response from Mid Beds and South Bedfordshire district councils that they could not reasonably have been expected to plan or pay for by way of preparation until they knew what Bedford borough would do. What about the time for public consultation in districts that have been placed in such a position?