The committee tasked with monitoring the NHS hospital trust which provides healthcare in Oldham has been reformed after accusations of almost 'four years of no accountability'.
Scrutiny for the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust (NCA) is reportedly "on the horizon" as its committee has been "reformed" to include opposition local councillors.
The NCA deals with staff, patients and services across Oldham, Bury, Rochdale and Salford, including Salford Royal Hospital, The Royal Oldham Hospital, Rochdale Infirmary and Fairfield General Hospital in Bury.
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The NCA was initially created in 2017 as the Northern Care Alliance NHS Group which brought together Salford Royal and Pennine Acute Trusts as one organisation under a group arrangement before formally becoming Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust in 2021.
However, Cllr Louie Hamblett, Crompton Liberal Democrat and Shadow Cabinet member for health and social care, claims the service has suffered due to years of no accountability in its committee.
He says this is because Labour councillors "controlled" meetings with "little to no input from opposition members".
Oldham Labour admits an "additional layer" has been added to the committee but called the councillor's comments "extraordinarily disingenuous".
Cllr Hamblett said: "After almost four years of no accountability we can finally get back around the table with other local authorities to discuss the pressing issues that affect hundreds of residents in Oldham, Rochdale, Bury and Salford.
"Backlogs, waiting times and lack of services are key issues for many of our residents and this is about holding those to account."
The opposition party has been calling for joint scrutiny of the NCA after, it claimed, Labour "failed to challenge them after they took over four hospitals without any further checks or scrutiny".
Cllr Hamblett added: “As I said before it has been clear for some time now, that the government has abandoned the NHS.
"Our local services are struggling.
"In the absence of proper leadership from the government, local councillors need work with healthcare leaders to get the best possible outcomes for our residents, I am glad that we will no longer be spectators on the sidelines while our health services are struggling."
However, Labour Cllr Barbara Brownridge, Oldham Council Cabinet member for health and adult social care, criticised the Lib Dem's comments.
She said: "Cllr Hamblett’s assessment that this Government has abandoned our health service is well made.
"However, as for the rest of his comments, he is being extraordinarily disingenuous.
“Northern Care Alliance have been before Oldham Council's Adult Social Care and Health Scrutiny Board a number of times this year.
"Cllr Hamblett knows this as he is a member of it.
"Cllr Hamblett fails to point out that this scrutiny committee has followed on from work that Labour councillors in Oldham, Bury, Rochdale and Salford have done in working across the region to hold the Northern Care Alliance to account.
"Northern Care Alliance has always been able to be scrutinised through our existing scrutiny board, but this gives us a chance to work alongside partner councils in Greater Manchester to add an additional layer."
In response, Cllr Hamblett said: “Yes, I am on the Health and Adult Scrutiny Board, Cllr Brownridge is correct.
"However, it was difficult having ad hoc sessions with the NCA during the year on a timetable that the Labour councillors controlled with little to no input from opposition members.
"The new scrutiny committee will be regularly timetabled and focused on holding the Northern Care Alliance to account.”
The news comes as Royal Oldham Hospital opened a new unit this year with high hopes the £28m extension to the hospital will tackle waiting times for patients needing emergency and colorectal surgery.
The hospital also hit headlines in December last year after the NCA withdrew its funding for television and entertainment packages before Christmas.
The move meant patients incurred a cost of around £7 a day to watch TV over the festive period.
Meanwhile, nurses and other staff at the hospital claim they are 'suddenly' being denied an NHS parking permit by the NCA - and have been hit with hefty parking fines as a result.
The Northern Care Alliance declined the opportunity to comment.
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