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Resignations see another Scrutiny panel thrown into disarray

Resignations see another Scrutiny panel thrown into disarray

Wednesday 22 March 2023

Resignations see another Scrutiny panel thrown into disarray

Wednesday 22 March 2023


A second Scrutiny panel has been thrown into disarray with the resignations of two of the five members - just weeks after the chair of another panel was ousted in a vote of no confidence.

Deputies Max Andrews and Raluca Kovacs stepped down from the Economic and International Affairs panel during this week's States Assembly meeting.

Both politicians were part of the initial formation of the panel following last summer's general election alongside chair Deputy Moz Scott.

Constables Richard Honeycombe and Marcus Troy both joined the panel at a later date.

Moz Scott.jpg

Pictured: The Economic and International Affairs Scrutiny panel is chaired by Deputy Moz Scott

Scrutiny panels must have a minimum of three members, although typically will comprise of four or five politicians.

The resignations come shortly after the Health and Social Security panel was forced to be reconstituted following the axing of Deputy Geoff Southern as its chair.

Earlier this month, Deputy Southern narrowly lost a vote of no confidence, brought against him by Deputy Sir Philip Bailhache, following a spat over the behaviour of panel members Deputies Andy Howell and Barbara Ward. 

Deputy Southern had asked the pair to resign following a complaint made by Health Minister Karen Wilson but Deputy Bailhache fought for them to remain.

Rob Ward.jpg

Pictured: Deputy Rob Ward was elected as the new chair of the Health and Social Security panel

Yesterday, Deputy Southern's Reform Jersey colleague Deputy Rob Ward was elected to take over as chair of the Health and Social Security panel after challenging Deputy Philip Bailhache for the role. 

What is a Scrutiny Panel?

Scrutiny Panels, which are made up of backbench politicians, are responsible for holding Ministers and their officers to account.

The job of Scrutiny is to be a 'critical friend' to Government, reviewing how it is run and proposals for new policy and legislation, and making recommendations for improvement. They are able to gather both physical evidence from Ministers and Government officials - such as reports - and hold hearings where they can question them on their work.

Each panel is responsible for a different area of policy - find out more about each one here.

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