Clause 63
Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Bill
10:00 am
Angela Smith (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Communities and Local Government; Basildon, Labour)
I understand the point that the hon. Gentleman is making, but the decision would not be made unilaterally. Councils will go through a due process as laid out in statutory guidance and in legislation, and the decision will be open and transparent. Decisions taken by a local council or by Parliament itself do not always meet with absolute agreement—in the real world, that does not happen—but there is always the backstop of judicial review. We should not build in so many checks and balances that principal authorities cannot take decisions themselves.
The hon. Member for Poole asked if it would be possible to abolish all parish councils after the review. Technically it would be, if the review procedures had been gone through and the principal authority had regard to all relevant considerations, such as committee identity and cohesion. The principal authority could do that, but it would have to consider whether the action was reasonable. The Electoral Commission would also be involved.
I think that the system contains enough checks and balances and that we do not need further bureaucracy. We must trust principal authorities to behave reasonably, to consult local people and to be open and transparent in their decision making.