Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Bill

I have three amendments in this group, but I am happy not to pursue them and to support the proposals of my noble friend Lady Scott and the noble Baroness, Lady Hanham. The executive arrangements that the Government want are designed for councils in which one group has a clear overall majority. They are not designed for councils with no overall control and, particularly, they are not designed for small district and rural councils that may consist of several groups and a number of independents. Such arrangements in those councils simply do not work properly. They are designed for a situation where there is a party that can get a grip on it. They may work in more political urban councils or big county councils where perhaps two parties can work together well; they do not work well in smaller councils where there is a larger variety. They have to be made to work and people make them work, but they are not designed for them. We urgently need more flexibility for such councils to design arrangements that suit their own circumstances.