Councillors welcome new mayor, but scrutiny changes provoke dissent

Cllr Sabri Ozaydin is this year's Mayor of Enfield

Enfield Council's Annual Meeting - the first ever to be held online - saw a council-wide welcome for the appointment of Cllr Sabri Ozaydin as Mayor of Enfield. However, when debate turned to changes to committee structures and scrutiny arrangements there was dissent - not just from Conservatives and the new Community First group, but also from within the controlling Labour Party ranks. There was also disagreement over an increase in the number of councillors who will receive special responsibility allowances.

The most controversial aspect of the changes to the council's committee structure and scrutiny arrangements was the merger of the conservation advisory group, green belt forum and public transport consultative group into a newly created environment and climate change panel. Southgate District Civic Voice raised the alarm about this change last week, concerned that the new panel would not have the capacity or expertise to adequately represent the community's views about these issues and asking members to contact their councillors and ask them to oppose the changes.

Despite the efforts of SDCV, the reforms were agreed after Labour councillors voted in favour, with the exception of Cllr Vicki Pite (Chase), who abstained, and Cllr Daniel Anderson (Southgate Green), who voted against. Members of the Conservative Group and Community First also voted against.

Community First comprises two councillors who resigned from the Labour Party earlier this year - Cllrs Derek Levy (Southgate) and Dinah Barry (Winchmore Hill).

The seven new scrutiny panels are: crime, health and adult social care, children and young people, regeneration and economic development, finance and performance, environment and climate action, and housing.

Following ratification of the new structure, SDCV expressed their disappointment in a Facebook post:

The new Environment Forum will combine the three functions of what were previously the Green Belt Forum, Conservation Advisory Group (CAG), and Public Transport Consultative Group. We have no information on how the new forum will work, as this change was made without consulting the many volunteers who have worked for years to improve Enfield for all its communities.

We are dismayed by the change and ask Enfield Council to think again.

In a press release (embargoed until 30 minutes after the start of the council meeting) the leader of the council's Labour Group wrote that the changes were designed to "bolster and improve scrutiny and extra accountability and transparency". She also noted that "For the tenth year in a row Labour Councillors have refused automatic pay increases to their Councillor allowances. Enfield Council has one of the lowest councillor allowances in London."

However, arguments during the council meeting related to a specific issue - an increase in the number of councillors who will receive special responsibility allowances. Conservative councillor Mike Rye suggested this was about “trying to build up the payroll vote for whoever is leader of the majority party”.