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Independent Community & Health Concern

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Independent Health Concern
LeaderHarry Grove
PresidentRichard Taylor
Founded1995 (1995)
Dissolved9 November 2023 (2023-11-09)
Succeeded byNational Health Action
Headquarters10 Swallow Drive,
Kidderminster, DY10 4DG
IdeologySingle-issue politics
Website
http://www.healthconcern.org.uk/

Independent Community and Health Concern (formerly Independent Kidderminster Hospital and Health Concern, and commonly referred to as Health Concern), abbr. ICHC, was a single-issue[1] political party in the United Kingdom, based in the town of Kidderminster. The party was founded out of support to restore the casualty unit at Kidderminster Hospital, and is best known for the success of its leader, Dr. Richard Taylor, who served Member of Parliament (MP) for Wyre Forest between 2001 and 2010. The party briefly held control of Wyre Forest District Council in 2002, on which three of its councillors have served as council leader.

History

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Background

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In 1997, Worcestershire health authority announced reforms to help reduce its multi-million pound budget deficit. This included downgrading Kidderminster Hospital to a minor injuries unit, which led to opposition from local campaign group, Independent Kidderminster Hospital and Health Concern, which had raised a 100,000 signature petition, led a protest march and lobbied the Prime Minister.[2] The plans went ahead in September 2000, leading to the closure of the Accident and Emergency (A&E) department, alongside other in-patient services.[3]

In early 1999, the group claimed to have 100,000 supporters and contested seats on Wyre Forest District Council in protest against the attempts to downgrade the hospital.[4][5] The following year, Health Concern formed the largest council bloc with 19 councillors.[5]

Richard Taylor

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By March 2001, Health Concern had announced that their leader, Richard Taylor, a retired consultant who worked at the hospital for 23 years, would be standing in the Wyre Forest constituency at the 2001 general election.[3] The area's incumbent Labour MP, David Lock, who had previously accused the Health Concern of scaremongering,[6] said the election was "not going to be a referendum on Kidderminster hospital".[3] Taylor won the seat with more than 28,000 votes at a surprise landslide victory, although he benefited from a decision by the Liberal Democrats not to put up a candidate of their own.[7] He was the only person not from a major party elected as an MP from an English constituency in the 2001 Parliament.[8]

Taylor was re-elected as member for Wyre Forest in the 2005 election, albeit with a considerably reduced majority. The party lost the seat in the 2010 election to the Conservative candidate, Mark Garnier, by a margin of 2,643 votes; the Liberal Democrats did field a candidate in 2010 having not done so in 2001 and 2005, which may have contributed to Taylor's defeat. Taylor was awarded an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in 2014, for services to Worcestershire, particularly Kidderminster Hospital.

Taylor went on to co-found the National Health Action Party, which encouraged doctors and other medical professionals to stand for parliament.[9][10] He continued to serve as the President of Health Concern, which he stood for again in Wyre Forest at the 2015 general election, placing fourth.[2]

Local government

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Before the 2004 local elections Health Concern held 16 seats on Wyre Forest District Council, making it the largest party, but in those elections it lost half of these seats to the Conservative Party.[11] By 2008, the party held 19 seats on the district council.[12] In the 2000s, the party had councillors on Worcester City Council and Redditch Borough Council,[13] and also held the Cleobury Mortimer ward on Shropshire Council for eight years.[14]

Dissolution and legacy

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In May 2022, Taylor announced that Independent Health Concern, which had eight councillors on Wyre Forest District Council, would withdraw from standing candidates in future elections, to "unify the independent vote".[15] The party was statutorily de-registered by the Electoral Commission the following year.[16]

Six former representatives stood in the 2023 Wyre Forest District Council election, of which two were elected, Peter Young and Nicola Martin.[citation needed]

Electoral history

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Parliamentary elections

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Health Concern's candidate Richard Taylor stood for the fourth time in Wyre Forest at the 2015 general election.[17]

Election yearCandidateVotes%PositionResult
2001Richard Taylor28,48758.11stElected
200518,73939.91stElected
201016,15032.72ndNot elected
20157,21114.64thNot elected

Local elections

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The party was fielded candidates at every election in Wyre Forest between 1999 and 2019.

Wyre Forest District Council
Election yearSeats wonVotesTotal seatsCouncil control
19997-7No overall control
20008-19No overall control
200276,34321Health Concern
200345,41619No overall control
200488,919-No overall control
200658,3629No overall control
200747,32710No overall control
200816,10010Conservative
2010311,5178Conservative
201115,8254Conservative
201256,6408No overall control
201415,3447No overall control
2015214,3612Conservative
201613,7113Conservative
201801,9212Conservative
201989,7638No overall control

The party held one seat in Shropshire between 2009 and 2017.[14]

Shropshire County Council
Election YearWard / DivisionCandidatePartyVotesResult
2009Cleobury MortimerMadge ShinetonHealth Concern1,454Elected
20131,181Elected
20171,311Elected

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ Bottom, Karin; Crow, Alison (2011). "Mob Rule? Two Case Studies of How Single-issue Organisations Became the Ruling Party on Council". Local Government Studies. 37 (2): 219–241. doi:10.1080/03003930.2011.554827.
  2. 1 2 Bates, Stephen (7 July 2024). "Dr Richard Taylor obituary". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Vasagar, Jeevan (26 March 2001). "Hospital row fuels independent's challenge". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
  4. ↑ Worrall, Boris (13 April 1999). "Labour fearing the worst as town hall battles loom". Birmingham Post. p. 4.
  5. 1 2 Walker, Jonathan (6 May 2000). "Hospital gives healthy majority Labour pushed out by campaigners' success". Birmingham Post. p. 5.
  6. ↑ "MP hits out over hospital scaremongering: Wyre Forest". Birmingham Post. 8 May 1999. p. 3.
  7. ↑ Gulland, A. (16 June 2001). "Doctor wins seat in fight to save hospital". BMJ. 322 (7300): 1443. ISSN 0959-8138. PMC 1120515. PMID 11408294.
  8. ↑ "General Election results, 7 June 2001" (PDF). House of Commons library. Retrieved 5 January 2020.
  9. ↑ "Richard Taylor aims to be doctor in the House – at 80". Kidderminster Shuttle. 1 August 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
  10. ↑ "Former MP to lead new political party opposed to NHS changes". BBC News. 14 May 2012. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
  11. ↑ "Wyre Forest council". BBC News Online. Retrieved 31 December 2009.
  12. ↑ Oborn, Eivor (April 2008). "Legitimacy of Hospital Reconfiguration: The Controversial Downsizing of Kidderminster Hospital". Journal of Health Services Research & Policy. 13 (2_suppl): 11–18. doi:10.1258/jhsrp.2007.007093.
  13. ↑ "Labour lose control of Redditch". 5 May 2006. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
  14. 1 2 "Local Elections Archive Project — Cleobury Mortimer Ward". www.andrewteale.me.uk. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
  15. ↑ "Independent Health Concern party to 'retire' from political fray". Kidderminster Shuttle. 18 May 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
  16. ↑ "View registration - The Electoral Commission". search.electoralcommission.org.uk. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
  17. ↑ "UK Parliament election results: Independent Kidderminster Hospital and Health Concern - general elections". UK Parliament election results. Retrieved 31 July 2026.
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