THE BIG SOCIETY

I’m all in favour of the return of the “Big Society” … yes my dear peeps … the return of community spirit.

Once upon my lifetime people watched out for each other. Helped each other and happily took care of elderly neighbours because it was the right thing to do. No one questioned sharing. Recompense never entered their minds. What changed?

I told my mum-in-law that the husband and I were going to spread sand and salt around the neighbours’ drives because we live off the main salting route. She nearly had a turn and said we couldn’t do that because if we did and someone fell we would be liable. For one thing I don’t believe my neighbour’s would sue us. For another … can someone tell me if it is true that helping people can bring the weight of the law upon our heads?  

The government say they are committed to “Creating a new generation of community organisers that will be trained to support the establishment of neighbourhood groups and introducing measures to encourage giving and philanthropy”.

Trained to support the establishment is the message that glares out at me. How come society needs to be trained to care?

The government say they are committed to, “Encouraging volunteering and involvement in social action, including launching a national ‘Big Society Day’ and making regular community involvement a key element of key civil service staff appraisals”. What exactly does that mean? It smacks of the mission statement mentality so highly praised by many organisations, including hospitals. This corporate world began with government departments. Where has it got us? For all their weird and wonderful terminology have services improved or not? That would be NOT. I wonder how much money is spent on think tanks and indecipherable, meaningless statements that look and sound great but have no substance.       

You government freaks need to get a reality check. If it weren’t for the people who give to charity, fund raise in all sorts of mad cap ways and run marathons, volunteer their time and share their hope for a better future you guys would have been consigned to the dustbin.

There is an old adage about leading by example. How can the government, in good conscience, ask people to participate in putting the world to rights when they have brought the country to its knees? MPs ripped us off by fiddling their expenses. The government allowed bankers to bankrupt us. Pension funds disappeared into the pit of corruption and mismanagement.

I had a varied career in the civil service and believe me; the waste I witnessed was phenomenal. Common sense never seemed to enter the heads of those in charge. It was a surreal world.

Government needs an injection of sensible, honest people who have no agenda and who won’t entertain “Spin”.

If the government wants to get back to basics why not start by asking volunteers to run the country. People who don’t want to make money. Caring, smart and altruist people who have the country’s best interest at heart. Start the saving regime by doing away with the ermine robes and the pomp and ceremony and truly get back to basics.