Sefton Conservative Councillors have joined with Labour to say ‘no’ to
Southport having any say on Health and Wellbeing. Despite no Labour
councillor having ever been elected to Sefton Council from any of the seven
Southport wards, the council’s Health & Wellbeing board will only have
Labour councillors representing wards in the South of the Borough.


At the Annual Sefton MBC Council meeting last night (Thursday), five
Sefton Tory councillors, including the notionally-suspended David Barton,
opposed a move by Southport Health spokesperson Councillor Tony Dawson to
place a single Southport councillor the Sefton Health & Wellbeing Board.

“Southport people are used to Bootle Labour Party refusing to let them have
a say," said Cllr Dawson, " But it is quite extraordinary that the
Conservatives are ganging up with them in this way on a matter as important
as the health of the people of our town.”

Health & Wellbeing Boards were set up by the government as special
committees of the Council with the power to co-opt a wide range of
specialist input from the NHS and voluntary sector to develop a
comprehensive health strategy for local people. These Boards were
specifically exempted from Local Authorities’ normal ‘proportionality
rules’ which would have automatically required there to be one Lib Dem
councillor on the Sefton Wellbeing Board.

“But the purpose of the exemption,” Councillor Dawson told councillors,
“is laid down in Local Government Authority guidance as being to allow
councils INCLUDE all communities, not to EXCLUDE them. It would be wrong
for Southport, which is the largest community in the Sefton Borough, to
have no representation on such an important body.”

“Southport has a completely different NHS economy to the rest of the area.
We largely use Southport & Ormskirk hospitals while the rest of the
borough, with the exception of some Formby patients, is mostly focused upon
Aintree and other Liverpool hospitals. It is important that Southport
residents should be represented by the people who they elected and who know
and understand this health economy and participate in it.”

Seconding the bid to have Southport represented, Councillor Sue McGuire
explained:

"A key objectives of the Health & Social Care Act was is to deliver
greater local accountability for health services. Southport needs to be
properly represented so that any concerns residents may have on their local
health service can be reported and responded to appropriately."

Cllr McGuire reminded Labour councillors of their own request some years
previously for representation for Bootle on the Board of the former Sefton
Primary Care Trust - a move which was accepted by other councillors at that
time.

"If Labour were to be consistent with what they said about Bootle
representation previously, you would agree with this proposal to ensure
that there is Southport representation on this Board.”

However, the Labour and Conservatives voted down the proposal for Southport
to be represented without saying a single word as to why.

Originally Posted by roving-eye

Sefton Conservative Councillors have joined with Labour to say ‘no’ to
Southport having any say on Health and Wellbeing. Southport Health spokesperson Councillor Tony Dawson to
place a single Southport councillor the Sefton Health & Wellbeing Board.

“Southport people are used to Bootle Labour Party refusing to let them have
a say," said Cllr Dawson, " But it is quite extraordinary that the
Conservatives are ganging up with them in this way on a matter as important
as the health of the people of our town.”

Southport should have better representation but this story needs more context as:

1) it's missing the other side of the debate, i.e. Why they said no as can't see why they'd vote against it unless it unless there's more behind this....could they be asked before such a press release is made?
2) isn't specific enough on the ask that was put forward so just come across as acLub Dem moan as id assume they'd want to put Cllr Dawson on the board
3) we seem to have a "Southport Health Spokesperson", who elected them to be our spokesperson and what are they actually a spokesperson for if we don't have a say on anything?
4) if the five had voted yes would it have made a difference?

If councillor Dawson can wipe away his tears he'll see that there are only 3 councillors on this board, all cabinet members. Councillor Dawson's party has no cabinet members and doesn't even put forward candidates in half of Sefton's wards. His party would only be able to represent the narrow interests of the Lib Dems. The councillors on the health and wellbeing board will represent the whole of Sefton whereas Cllr Dawson and his ilk are explicit in their aim to only represent a single part of the borough to the detriment of other areas. No wonder no one will select him for a Sefton wide role.

Originally Posted by ecclefechan

If councillor Dawson can wipe away his tears he'll see that there are only 3 councillors on this board, all cabinet members. Councillor Dawson's party has no cabinet members and doesn't even put forward candidates in half of Sefton's wards. His party would only be able to represent the narrow interests of the Lib Dems.

The cabinet members on Sefton Council are all Labour, and in fact nearly all of them are Bootle Labour councillors.

So all 3 councillors on this board must be Labour and mostly or all Bootle Labour.

So, according to your "logic", are you saying that they only represent "the narrow interests of Labour/Bootle Labour"? If they are, then that is surely Cllr Dawson's point.

Originally Posted by ecclefechan

The councillors on the health and wellbeing board will represent the whole of Sefton whereas Cllr Dawson and his ilk are explicit in their aim to only represent a single part of the borough to the detriment of other areas.

Well all would-be councillors stand for election with the aim of respresenting a single part of the borough (called a ward), it's just that Labour are singularly unsuccessful in doing that for the area served by the Southport and Formby District General Hospital.

Just to remind you, in Southport and Formby, in the recent local elections, Labour lost all their seats, with the final tally being:

• 7 - Lib Dem (+1)
• 1 - Conservative
• 1 - Independent (+1)
• 0 - Labour (-2)

Just to remind you that, according to Sefton's website, "The overriding duty of Councillors is to the whole community...". Southport's Lib Dem councillors could do well to remember that when they adopt their Southport Party little Sandgrounder stance

Given Cllr Dawson is the self styled "health and adult care spokesman" I'm sure he'd want to be the Lib on that board so no thanks! He can't even work out when he's given free parking or not and what exactly would he know about health care, it'd turn into a petty set of library counting sessions rather than solving the much bigger NHS issues....I'd worry we'd just get a series of FOI request but nothing after other than stirring up public ire as there's never a plan behind the rants.

As ive said before our Councillors need to focus on the town and not the rosette and work together for the town who employs them.

When John Pugh stops "fighting for southport" or "pushing southport forward" to sit on Lord street lovingly drawing pictures of sainsburys whilst the rest of the town is empty (other than the sainsburys we've fought for) I'd doubt they'd out Cllr Dawson forward, the only one with reasonable credibility is Cllr McGuire (overlooking the tram from the peer to ASDA request).

Originally Posted by ecclefechan

Just to remind you that, according to Sefton's website, "The overriding duty of Councillors is to the whole community...". Southport's Lib Dem councillors could do well to remember that when they adopt their Southport Party little Sandgrounder stance

What exactly are you trying to say?

For example when you say:

Originally Posted by ecclefechan

whereas Cllr Dawson and his ilk are explicit in their aim to only represent a single part of the borough to the detriment of other areas

what is your basis for saying that?

What is this "explicit" evidence?

Incidentally you would do well to read more of the quote from the Sefton Council website. It actually says:
"Councillors are democratically accountable to residents of their ward. The overriding duty of Councillors is to the whole community, but they have a special duty to their constituents, including those who did not vote for them."

I think you know exactly what I'm trying to say.

Originally Posted by ecclefechan

I think you know exactly what I'm trying to say.

His/her typical tactic to not answer the question and protect the libs at all cost! Almost as predictable as the squirming when asked if he/she is a Councillor

Originally Posted by ecclefechan

I think you know exactly what I'm trying to say.

I think you are trying to say that everything Labour do is marvellous, la, la, la.

However that still doesn't explain why you assert that "Cllr Dawson and his ilk are explicit in their aim to only represent a single part of the borough to the detriment of other areas".

Originally Posted by prasnee

I think you are trying to say that everything Labour do is marvellous, la, la, la.

However that still doesn't explain why you assert that "Cllr Dawson and his ilk are explicit in their aim to only represent a single part of the borough to the detriment of other areas".

Do you think everything the Libs do is marvellous? If not, what could they be better at?

I often click onto these threads thinking - 'that will be interesting' but no - it invariably turns out to be yet another playground spat between pratnee, ecclefechwit and uselessname!

It was hardly going to be that interesting when it's so one sided that it's just another Lib Dem press release on how our self styled Health and Adult care spokesman Cllr Dawson is disappointed he couldn't get on the board. If it had more angles it'd be interesting but no...it's another us versus the world again.

If prasnee is a Councillor maybe (as tedious as they are) it gives an insight into why our councillors aren't very effective in getting anything done.