With the defection last week of Cllr Roger Mazillius from the opposition side to the Council Conservative Group, the Labour councillors at County Hall have decided to re-engage with the formal Scrutiny functions of opposition members.
Last July Cllr Deborah Gardiner and I decided to support a principled withdrawal from Scrutiny by all but one of the opposition councillors – a withdrawal initiated by Cllr Mazillius around the issue of meeting times.
However, in the light of Cllr Mazillius’ defection the Labour Group has decided to re-commence participation in Scrutiny.
I have told the media, “Our decision is based on both the changed circumstances of Cllr Mazillius’ defection and our increasing worry that the important Scrutiny function is just not being done under the new Chair of Scrutiny, Cllr Garry Price. Last July we felt it was important to have a united front against Conservative diktat over meeting times. However, that front has now been broken by Cllr Mazillius. In the light of the many worrying changes to the way the IW Council operates, and the seeming inability of Cllr Price to either convene a Scrutiny Committee meeting or set a programme of inquiry, we have decided that we need to re-engage. We do this in the hope that dialogue will replace diktat, and in the best interests of representing the many, many Islanders who are concerned at the direction the Council has been taking over the last 3 months”
The Labour councillors have also urged all other opposition group members to join them in this move
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