Two Hampshire council leaders say current devolution plan will fail
"We've looked carefully at all the options. Some would save more money on paper, but they come with bigger risks – like breaking up services, creating confusion, or putting too much pressure on councils already facing financial challenges," Adams-King said."Others would cost significantly more and take longer to deliver any benefit."We will be carefully considering this four-council model which aims to strike the right balance."In a joint statement, the 12 district councils said: "A single, county-wide approach can't reflect the needs of such a diverse area. Our proposed model allows services to be designed and delivered around real communities, not a one-size-fits-all system."
They warned the alternative plan "risks creating powerless talking shops".A key point of contention is the future of the New Forest, which is treated differently in each proposal. One New Forest councillor, Jack Davies, likened the options to "being asked if you want to be hanged, or shot, or blown up with a bazooka".The changes form part of government devolution plans due by 2028.
You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
10 minutes ago
- The Independent
NHS managers who silence whistleblowers to be banned from senior health roles
NHS managers who silence whistleblowers will be banned from taking up other senior health service roles, the Government has announced. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said the proposals will ensure those who commit serious misconduct are no longer able to work in senior NHS management positions. Legislation is set to be put forward to Parliament next year to introduce professional standards and regulation of NHS managers. Tens of thousands of clinical and non-clinical managers work in the NHS but there is currently no regulatory framework specifically for managers, as there is for doctors and nurses. Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the reforms will 'slam the door in the face of unsuitable managers'. Mr Streeting added: 'I'm determined to create a culture of honesty and openness in the NHS where whistleblowers are protected, and that demands tough enforcement. 'If you silence whistleblowers, you will never work in the NHS again. 'We've got to create the conditions where staff are free to come forward and sound the alarm when things go wrong. Protecting the reputation of the NHS should never be put before protecting patient safety. 'Most NHS leaders are doing a fantastic job, but we need to stop the revolving door that allows managers sacked for misconduct or incompetence to be quietly moved to another well-paid role in another part of the NHS.' DHSC said a public consultation launched in November last year received more than 4,900 contributions on ways in which managers and leaders could be regulated. The statutory barring system will be for board-level directors and their direct reports within NHS bodies. Further legislation will set out new statutory powers for the Health and Care Professions Council to disbar NHS leaders in senior roles who have committed serious misconduct. Separate NHS England professional standards for managers will establish a 'consistent, national set of expectations about NHS management and leadership competency and conduct', DHSC said. Tom Kark KC, author of the Kark Review into the effectiveness of the fit and proper person test within the NHS, said: 'I am pleased that the recommendation made in my report into the application of the NHS fit and proper person test to create a power to disqualify board directors found guilty of serious misconduct is being implemented. 'Along with the ongoing implementation of my other recommendations for improving board competence, this is a positive move to strengthen management in the NHS by weeding out poor leadership. 'This is good news for whistleblowers and those looking for accountability in senior management which has long been lacking.' Rachel Power, chief executive of the Patients Association, said patients expect NHS managers 'to be held to the same high standards as clinical staff, and that should include consistent regulation'. Ms Power added: 'A clear, fair process to prevent those who commit serious misconduct from returning to senior roles will be an important step forward, and it's vital that patient involvement continues to shape proposals as further regulation is considered.' Saffron Cordery, deputy chief executive of NHS Providers, said the membership organisation for hospital, mental health, community and ambulance services thought 'only 'fit and proper' people should be running NHS services'. Ms Cordery added: 'Many big, complex NHS trusts employ thousands of people therefore we want to attract the very best to lead them. 'So we welcome the Government's commitment to developing and accrediting managers alongside proposals for disbarring those whose performance falls short.' Sam Allen, NHS national director for leadership and management, said: 'Managers will welcome this new regulatory framework, as part of the broader package of actions set out in the plan to attract, develop, and retain the best possible leaders for the NHS of today and tomorrow.'
The Independent
10 minutes ago
- The Independent
Labour minister says he is ‘not at all surprised' by Reform's lead in the polls
Steve Reed has said he is 'not at all surprised' Reform UK is consistently beating Labour in the polls. The environment secretary said Nigel Farage 's party poll lead is a ' reflection of people's disenchantment with politics'. ' I am not at all surprised, because we just had 14 years where people were promised so much, and all of those promises were broken,' he told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg. Mr Reed said: 'Through austerity, through Brexit, after the pandemic with build back better, none of it actually happened. 'The public want to see the change they actually voted for become real.' He went on to outline Labour's plan to leave Britain with the cleanest rivers on record by rebuilding crumbling sewage pipes and overhauling the regulation of water firms. Reform is currently leading in the polls with 29 per cent of the vote, with Labour trailing in second place on 23 per cent. A recent so-called mega poll by YouGov put Mr Farage's party on course to comfortably gain the most MPs in a general election, winning 271 seats compared to Labour on 178. Reform would not have a majority, but would by far be the largest party and unseat cabinet ministers Angela Rayner, Yvette Cooper, Bridget Phillipson and Jonathan Reynolds. Asked about the poll deficit and how Labour plans to turn it around, Mr Reed said: 'This government is making change for this country, but it takes time for that to feed through. 'I'm proud of what we're doing. I'm proud of this government and the British public will see the change they voted for over the coming months and years.' Labour's first year in power ended disastrously, with headlines dominated by the chaotic U-turn over Sir Keir Starmer 's planned £5bn benefit cuts. And polling guru Sir John Curtice said Sir Keir had " the worst start for any newly elected prime minister, Labour or Conservative". He said Labour's landslide victory last summer had masked vulnerabilities in the party's support and its policies. 'Labour only won 35 per cent of the vote – the lowest share ever for a majority government. Keir Starmer was never especially popular, and the public still don't know what he stands for,' he told Times Radio. 'The only vision he's really presented is: 'We'll fix the problems the Conservatives left us.' But it's not clear how he wants to change the country.'
The Independent
40 minutes ago
- The Independent
Inquiry launched after identities of SAS soldiers leaked in fresh data breach
Army leaders have launched an inquiry after the identities of soldiers in the SAS were revealed in a fresh data breach. Details about the elite unit, part of UK Special Forces, are usually kept so secret that its members are barred for life from discussing their involvement unless they receive prior approval. News of the breach comes just days after it emerged the Ministry of Justice had taken out an unprecedented superinjunction after up to 100,000 lives were put at risk of reprisals from the Taliban in a catastrophic data leak. Around 18,700 Afghans who applied for sanctuary in Britain after the withdrawal of western forces in 2021 had their names and contact details exposed after an MoD official emailed a secret database to trusted contacts in February 2022. A number of SAS members and MI6 operatives were also compromised in the major leak. In yet another data lapse, the Sunday Times reported that details of at least 20 Special Forces soldiers recruited from the Grenadier Guards have been publicly available online for a decade. In response, General Sir Roly Walker, the head of the army, has ordered an 'immediate review' of the data sharing arrangements that led to the incident. At least 20 least 20 SAS members have been named by two different regimental publications over more than a decade, according to the newspaper. The Grenadier Guards in-house publication included a roll call of the names and current deployments of its most senior officers. In the latest edition, published last year and available online, the names of ten men in the regiment allegedly appeared next to the codename 'MAB' — shorthand for MoD A Block, which is the site of the UK Special Forces headquarters at the Regent's Park Barracks in London. The codename is well-known in military circles and means enemies would know which soldiers were linked to an elite unit. The breaches were first reported in April and while another regiment removed similar publications, the remaining information on the Guards was only taken down on Friday. Those whose details were compromised have been notified and protected, it is understood. General Sir Roly Walker said: 'The security of our people is of the utmost importance and we take any breach extremely seriously. '[As a result of this incident], I have directed an immediate review into our data sharing arrangements with our regimental and corps associations to ensure appropriate guidance and safeguards are in place to best support the vital work they do.'
