Council chiefs debate sharing work

Plans for a merger of health and social care for a third of the country’s population and a joint approach to dealing with waste will take their first steps forward today when west of Scotland council leaders and chief executives meet to begin examining an overhaul of public services.

Two months since former NHS chief and leading academic Sir John Arbuthnott published his recommendations for the biggest shake-up of Scottish local democracy in a generation, the eight local authorities involved have now indicated what they are prepared to sign up to and where their priorities are.

The meeting, in Dumbarton, comes as the umbrella body for Scotland’s 32 local authorities issues its first public statements on the review, stating there must be a quick return on proposals to merge services across council boundaries if the process is to be worthwhile.

Cosla also insists the impact of major job losses and the effects both on communities and the public purse must be factored in when considering how the “shared services” agenda is progressed.

Among the early favourites within any overhaul is the creation of a single body taking charge of the care of the elderly, including admission to and discharge from hospital, the purchase of social care services such as special needs and residential services for young people and mental health and drug and alcohol services. These areas are a massive drain on resources and there is often duplication between councils and health boards.

With the pressure of landfill targets and the need for hundreds of millions of pounds of investment for major infrastructure to process household rubbish, a joint waste management scheme has also emerged as an early frontrunner.

More than 50% of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s resources are spent on health in the community, while landfill taxes are likely to cost the Clyde Valley authorities an extra £7 million next year alone.

However, reservations remain, with some councils holding back on total commitment until they see how business cases for change stack up and whether they can actually reduce costs.

A senior source at one of the smaller authorities said the concern of services being dictated by larger, “predatory”, councils had not evaporated during Sir John’s review or the month since, adding there was still a fear over the erosion of local democracy. The source also said there was concerns about the ramifications for those authorities “not showing willing”.

Rory Mair, chief executive of Cosla, said that, while there was a widespread willingness to embrace change, other considerations had to be factored in.

He said: “Sir John himself is saying that if we think shared services are the route to solving this period of financial difficulty councils can only invest where they think they will get a quick return. They won’t solve any problems if we’re going to get a return a decade down the line.

“There is a genuine worry that what we’re talking about is the loss of jobs. If we start saying that shared services does indeed mean job losses, coming out of a recession is this what we really want to do?

“We must think through very carefully the impact. At the end of the process there will be fewer jobs so how do we manage that and can we really say that it’s all been for the betterment?

“It’s not just about things being cheaper but the impact on the security of communities.”

Iain Robertson, leader of West Dunbartonshire Council and chairman of the Clyde Valley Partnership, said: “The submissions from each council will ultimately determine the direction of the action plan over the next five years. We have an ambitious timetable ahead of us and we are unanimous in our belief that we need to quickly agree our priorities and embark on delivering real change.”

Finance Secretary John Swinney said: “I have studied the Arbuthnott report and it is consistent with our approach to deliver efficient and effective public services. The Scottish Government welcomes its direction and the strong case for substantive sharing of services in the eight council areas.

“While the decision to adopt a shared approach is ultimately one for the local authorities themselves, I expect decisive leadership in the public sector to remove barriers and look forward to hearing about progress on this agenda in the near future.”