At today’s Suffolk County Council Scrutiny Committee, two separate referrals on how the Council’s decision to judicially review the Government was administered were discussed. The two referrals were brought separately by Conservative Group Leader, Richard Rout, and Councillor Martin Cook, Leader of the Labour Party Group.
Cllr Richard Rout’s referral asked the committee to consider whether the decision to commit the Council to the judicial review should have been treated as a ‘key decision’ under the Council’s constitution and relevant regulations. His referral raised concerns about the significance of the decision for communities across Suffolk, the potential expenditure of up to £500,000, how the decision was classified and publicised, and the financial basis for committing Council reserves to the litigation.
Following the discussion, a vote was taken which split down party lines – six Reform councillors voted against looking into it further, while the six opposition councillors, including two Conservatives, voted in favour of forming a Task and Finish Group to investigate the matter thoroughly. The Chairman of the Committee, Cllr Julia Ewart, used her casting vote to ensure the investigation will happen.
Councillor Richard Rout, Leader of the Conservative Group, said:
“There has been widespread dissatisfaction around how the Council handled the decision to launch a judicial review against the Government, in terms of transparency, proper classification of the decision and communication with councillors. Although the Monitoring Officer issued a Section 5A Report on where two breaches of the law occurred, its remit was narrow and backward-looking. Therefore, I’m pleased the committee has decided to launch a thorough investigation which will hold all involved properly to account.
“This is not about revisiting the Judicial Review or determining whether it was right or wrong to launch it. It’s about ensuring full transparency, public accountability and proper processes around future decisions, and learning from the mistakes, or missteps, that were made.
“It’s disappointing that despite promising ‘openness and accountability’ when they were elected, all six Reform councillors voted against looking into this further. However, thanks to the Chairman’s casting vote, their attempts to shut down scrutiny were thwarted.
“Getting processes correct and ensuring decisions are made fully in the open impacts all of us as councillors and the work we do on behalf of our residents. I’m confident that this piece of work will help improve how the Council is administered going forward and better enable councillors, and the public, to hold Suffolk County Council to account.”
Suffolk Conservatives will continue to contribute to the investigation being undertaken by the Task and Finish Group established by members of the Scrutiny Committee, helping to ensure that the issues raised are examined thoroughly and that any lessons identified can inform how the Council handles similar decisions in the future.
