Tories’ ‘Big Society’ idea half baked says Hilary

Letter from Hilary Myers to the Halifax Courier, 28 April 2010:

David Cameron’s big idea to help mend what the Tories cynically call ‘Broken Britain’ is to create a ‘Big Society’. At the heart of this poorly thought out concept is the notion that social enterprises, charities and voluntary groups should play a leading role in delivering public services. Apart from the fact that this message is obviously lost on Tory-run Calderdale Council, who singularly failed to safeguard the future of our key local social enterprise, Kerbside, when drawing up a new waste collection contract, this reliance on hardworking people who supposedly have extra time on their hands is a notorious way of trying to get government on the cheap.

Whilst we do need to examine ways of ‘reducing waste’ and ‘bureaucracy’, neither Labour nor the Tories care to share with the electorate their exact plans for identifying and eradicating these elusive inefficiencies. Most people would like more say in running their local schools, libraries, parks and amenities and in making planning decisions. More importantly, what they would really like, and have a right to expect, are democratically accountable bodies to help them do so. They simply want these things done better.

The Liberal Democrats are the only major party to propose stronger local government. They understand that many people already give of their time and energy to help make their communities and neighbourhoods better, safer places. The centralising tendency of the last Labour government, and the patronising talk of a privileged shadow Tory cabinet, many of whom do not have to make a living like the rest of us, leads to half baked and patronising proposals like a ‘Big Society’. If voters want real change which recognises and values the importance of local communities and the many individuals and organisations who help make our country, Yorkshire and Calderdale, the great place that it is, then they should vote for the Liberal Democrats next week.