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Scotland's health boards
26/06/2008
The Health Boards (Membership and Elections) (Scotland) Bill was published today with the aim of re-energising public engagement in the health service.
Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said elected health boards would make the NHS more accountable and responsive to the public by creating a greater sense of ownership and participation in decision making.
Key proposals include:
- Elected members - including local authority representatives and those directly elected by the public - will form a majority of health board members. A chair and other members will be appointed by Ministers, as at present
- A pilot election(s) to be held and evaluated before any decision on further rollout
- Elections to be held every four years on a proportional representation (Single Transferable Vote) basis. A single ward will cover the whole health board area
- Lowering the age to vote in health board elections to 16
Ms Sturgeon said:
"In this, the 60th anniversary year of the NHS, there is a pressing need for us to remember what having a publicly-owned health service means.
"The NHS is an institution people rightly cherish as co-owners. But we have to make sure people are fully involved and do not feel shut out of decision making as they have in the past.
"That is why I have brought forward this Bill for elected health board members, to allow the public voice to be heard and listened to at the heart of the decision making process.
"This should ensure that, in future, decisions about local healthcare better reflect the views of those who use - and whose taxes pay for - NHS services.
"We want this process to include as many users of the health service as possible and that is why we want to extend the franchise to 16-year-olds.
"This is an important way of introducing young people to the democratic process as they reach adulthood, within a public service of which they will already have experience."
Elected members will replace a number of the members on each board currently appointed by Ministers.
Subject to the Bill's progress through Parliament, it is anticipated that the first pilot(s) will get underway in 2010 and last for at least two years in order for the full range of issues to be tested.