The Health & Wellbeing Board have agreed for former Conservative Councillor, Brian Mattock, to become the Chair of the Board, despite not representing any local health body nor be accountable to anybody. Brian Mattock lost the 2016 Old Town local election to the Labour Candidate.
Leader of the Council, David Renard, proposed Brian Mattock joining the Health & Wellbeing Board as its Chair at its last meeting (see the Leader of the Council’s Report to the Health & Wellbeing Board attached) and at next Wednesday’s Swindon Full Council Meeting, Councillors are being asked to agree to a change of the terms of reference of the board in order to allow Mr Mattock to the chair position.
This position is current not remunerated, however Swindon Independent Remuneration Panel have proposed that the Chair of the Health & Wellbeing post will receive an allowance of £6,165 by 2018/19.
The Leader of the Labour Group, Councillor Jim Grant, says he is against Brian Mattock becoming the Chair of the Health & Wellbeing Board. He said:
“I am totally against Mr Mattock joining the Health & Wellbeing Board as Chair, when he is not representing nor is accountable to anybody. In fact you could argue the only person he is accountable to is the Conservative Party.
As much as we disagree with many of the policies the Conservative Group propose, we respect that they are the majority of councillors and therefore should lead important decision-making bodies like the Health & Wellbeing Board. So why isn’t a representative of the Conservative Cabinet sitting as the Chair of this body? Are they really saying that there is nobody in their Cabinet with the competence to be able to be able to Chair such an important body?
At a time when many Conservatives are saying they want to leave the EU because they don’t like decision being taken by unelected and unaccountable bureaucrats, it seems curious that this is exactly what they are proposing with this appointment.”