The Big Society. Failure?

[danielf]

Originally Posted by Ignitionnet

I think it's the cool name for trying to get people to give a monkeys about people apart from themselves and not be total bumholes to each other.

I think - to me it sounds like the usual political buzzwords and nonsense.

I thought it meant cutting funding for all sorts of social work and expecting the local communities to step in and do the work themselves. For free...

Originally Posted by Ignitionnet

Yes, the budget and the comprehensive spending review.

Cuts in funding have been announced, can't think of many that kick in until April, same can't be said for VAT and duty increases.

Someone I know works people with learning disabilities. This is one of the things where the organisation is a charity that tenders to local councils and get's contracts. They have has massive redundancies as the councils are spending less on it. Much less. Mostly people are tiered and only the level top level, those with the most complex problems, are covered. I am not sure if that counts as an effect as it's not a government employee being laid off.

[Ignitionnet]

Here's a thought while discussing cuts.

There is probably no need for councils to wage a propaganda war to ensure that blame for the cuts falls upon the coalition. But the London borough of Newham has launched one nonetheless. Besides spitting vitriol about coalition cuts in its in-house magazine (which costs £547,000 a year to produce), the borough’s £81,000-a-year elected mayor Sir Robin Wales (who rules in tandem with the borough’s £241,000-a-year chief executive) has made a video moaning about the unfairness of his reduced budget. The video holds forth about the great achievements of the council — omitting, for some reason, any mention of the £111 million that the council has just spent buying and fitting out its own spanking new waterside HQ. It is so luxurious — with designer lights costing £1,800 each — that it won an award from the British Council for Offices, beating any bank headquarters. But the cost of this temple of extravagance has nothing to do with your child’s playgroup or your meal-on-wheels being cancelled, of course — that is all the government’s fault.

[fatmat8]

"the bid society is a huge con"

Well, that informed and well-reasoned proposition has convinced me...

[Gary L]

[Ignitionnet]

Nice propaganda and of course totally untrue. Maggie had far more testicular fortitude than that drip Cameron does.

[Will21st]

Originally Posted by Ignitionnet

Nice propaganda and of course totally untrue. Maggie had far more testicular fortitude than that drip Cameron does.

Indeed...
the way I see it,the more charities,councils and other receivers of government funds (a.k.a our money) complain,the better! We,the people of this country,rely far too much on government as a whole.Always complaining about how useless and crap the state is,yet we cry for mummies t..ts as soon as something goes wrong!
We can't have it both ways! I guess there is a socialist streak in our blood,but at the same time we want to be free and pay low taxes... that doesn't work.

We need to be our own government,look out for our communities,for the people in our communities,give the odd quid here and there,get engaged in Civil matters and generally take good care of ourselves and our own lives!

The gov only cares for us when it wants something,our money!Otherwise we don't exist..

I say yes to big society! The more society,the less government,and vice versa,imho.

Take care!!

[Hom3r]

I still don't have a clue what "The Big Society" is or the point.

[techguyone]

I always get very twitchy when (and it doesn't really matter whose party it is) when they seem unable to make a decision and then keep to it for more than a day or two before either backtracking completely or changing it.

It certainly doesn't inspire confidence in the face of the Government when they're being very dithery.

I was always taught in business 'make a decision, an informed decision, then stick with it' because nothing makes your colleages more uneasy than anything is a Manager who doesn't seem to know what they're doing.

Same thing applies to Government, the principles are much the same.