It's time to transform at Health

But Gavin St Pier will walk through the Health & Social Care committee room doors at the hospital site within days with plenty of expectation. Some may feel this is an appointment made three-and-a-half years too late.

Will he be a canary in the coal mine? A troublemaker? Or an enthusiastic and supportive member of the team? We have occasionally seen, over the years, politicians elected to committees with the intent to disrupt, or to pursue an agenda. Was this the case here? Or is it possible that Deputy St Pier could wear all three hats?

He argued this week that his time away from the political coalface had made him a better scrutineer. And the first task on HSC will be to help demonstrate rigour over the finances of hospital modernisation.

But Deputy St Pier was also clear about the bigger picture in health, one which has not been, demonstrably anyway, addressed so far this term. The need to build a new model of care.

‘The trajectory of demand is upward, but we cannot keep firefighting, and must accept our healthcare model is unsustainable and that requires fundamental change. We don’t transform. We just add,’ he said.

This won’t be addressed in 12 months. But the journey can start. One person alone can’t turn a political committee around. But they can influence it.