The power of governors in the NHS has never really been tested and they are often more the passive recipients of information than driving forces within their organisation. But in principle, governors have the power to block mergers and acquisitions. At the tiny Queen Victoria Hospitals Foundation Trust in Sussex, a majority of the current 22 governors would like to see at least a pause to the planned acquisition by University Hospitals Sussex FT. A request to this effect was turned down by the board, which said the governors could not restrict its business. This clash with the board – which is likely to take further moves towards a merger on Thursday – is linked to arguments over the role of governors within the trust and the need for confidentiality of some material they might have access to, leading to a council of governors meeting being described by the trust chair Beryl Hobson as “the most unedifying meeting” she had ever attended. The “very challenging” meeting had “comments expressed around bullying behaviour,” according to the board minutes.