Charities and social services

There is a myth put around by the Labour party that the Conservatives are against social services and that we will be cutting social provision.

This is of course complete and utter nonsense. One of the main motivators for my political activities is a desire to improve the lot of the entire population.

Where I take issue with the Socialists is that they believe that only the Government can and should provide.

The problem with this philosophy is that it ignores the message of history which shows very clearly that Government is very bad at providing caring services. You only have to look at the enourmous sums of money spent by the Government on Social services and the number of stories of failure that accompany them. Examples being Victoria Climbie and Baby P.

Social care only really works where there is an extra element, that is where people are motivated by love for their fellow man. Where this is there, you will deal with the real problems and not simply seek to plaster over the symptoms to meet targets.

Take Homelessness. People become homeless for many reasons, but ultimately it happens because the person has no one they can turn to. In other words, where family has broken down, there is a greater risk of homelessness.

There are many agencies and charities dealing with homelessness. In Edinburgh where I live there are various. There is of course the social services department of the council. By and large they do a reasonable job, within the restrictions that they have, ie the target driven culture of the Labour Government.

Compare that however with (for example) Bethany Christian Trust. Established 25 years ago and working mainly in Edinburgh seeking to relieve homelessness. What is startling is that they operate on a shoestring (as do most charities) yet they are able to do their work at a 10th of the cost of social services and their success rate is phenomenal. 75% of all referrals to Bethany move on to permanent accommodation and are still there and in employment two years after leaving Bethany.

A 10:1 success rate simply cannot be ignored. Indeed I've brough this to the attention of the senior members of the party. Recently Francis Maude was in Edinburgh, and we took the opportunity to take him along to meet with Bethany and to see some of their work. It's fair to say that Francis was mightily impressed.

Looking to the future, you have to ask, should government not encourage more work of this nature in preference to the tried, tested and failed government provided social services?

Yes, I believe in social provision, I believe that the poor and underprivileged should be helped, it's just that government has a bad track record, and charities, doing it out of love for their fellow man seem to be much better at it. For the sake of the homeless and the taxpayers, let's encourage the likes of Bethany.

Lib Dems and the local income tax

The Council tax, like any tax is not popular, although much of the reason for theis can be laid at the door of the Labour government which over the past 11 years has heaped more and more responsibilities onto local authorities without a corresponding increase in revenue to cope. Given the gearing effect of the tax, the increases have been disproportionate. It has been the ultimate Labour stealth tax.

Alex Salmond’s SNP want to replace this with a so called local income tax, which is not local. Given their lack of a majority in the Scottish parliament the SNP need help. Step forward the Liberal Democrats who seem keen to support the SNP in making Scotland a less attractive place to live not to say more expensive for young couples where both are working. I’m sure that the voters of Edinburgh and elsewhere will remember the Lib Dems support of this flawed idea at the next elections and will vote accordingly.

Far better the solution proposed by the Conservatives which seeks to reform rather than replace the council tax and in so doing will cut bills for everyone.

Government advice on Pets

Cat and dog owners are to be told to provide "entertainment" and "mental stimulation" for their pets under new government advice.
The code of practice also includes advice on diet and providing "somewhere suitable to go to the toilet". (bbc 4/11/08)

At a time of economic crisis when government spending is mushrooming out of all proportion it says something about this government that they employ people to do something as pointless and idiotic as to tell people how to look after their pets.

If ever there was evidence of the opportunity to cut government spending to reduce taxes without having any effect on services then this is it.

Bankers Bonuses

The Lib Dems have criticised banks for apparently putting money aside for bonuses to be paid next year.

As would be expected they huff and puff about how wrong this is, all the time exposing their complete financial and economic illiteracy.

They fail to understand that bonuses in industry are paid as a reward for success. The people so paid have delivered beyond agreed targets , therefore have made a positive contribution to the profits of that company. If a company makes profits, it will pay taxes, and those taxes pay for the workings of Government.

Just where do the Lib Dems think government money comes from?