WHY POLITICS MATTER PART ONE
An article last May in the Daily Telegraph established that ‘two thirds of
the Cabinet — 18 out of 29 ministers — were millionaires.[1]
The same article reported the entire net worth of the cabinet stood at £70
million pounds and that David Cameron’s own net worth was £3.8million, with
liquid assets of £190,000. Cameron’s
wealth is somewhat comically described as ‘self made;’ this means that his
parants left him a great deal of money which he increased by dealing in
property. Buying and selling property is probably just about the least useful
of social activities, property millionaires bear about as much relationship to
the well being of the societies they inhabit as the fleas on a dogs back do to the welfare of a dog.
George Osborne is stated to be worth 4.5 million in property, which he inherited. He has
inherited an additional stake in a family-owned fabric and wallpaper designer business. This is the same man who has introduced a three-year welfare
squeeze, with real terms cuts in income support payments, housing benefit,
jobseeker’s allowance, child benefit and tax credits. He has decided to limit
rises to 1% on all of these benefits.
This government likes to talk in percentages as this disguises the reality of what people on benefits actually have to live on. The financial support provided by the state, for the unemployed and disabled in the UK is amongst the lowest in Europe.[2] For example a single person under the age of 25 is expected to live on £53.45; two pints of milk is now £1, a loaf of bread from 80p to £1.35. Tragically many people who have been pushed into severe financial hardship by the recession, having been misled by the tabloid press into imagining there existed a generous welfare system, have been shocked by the reality of what living on benefits actually entails.
Mr Osborne, who likes to depict the unemployed as shirkers and spongers, who
lie snickering in bed behind closed curtains, is a man who sought to dodge
paying his full train fare when journeying from Wimslow to London, travelling in
first class on a standard class ticket. (It being clearly understood that Mr
Osborne could not possibly travel with the unwashed masses).[3]His boss Mr Cameron thought it appropriate to
claim from the public purse the full cost of his TV licence whilst in opposition.This government likes to talk in percentages as this disguises the reality of what people on benefits actually have to live on. The financial support provided by the state, for the unemployed and disabled in the UK is amongst the lowest in Europe.[2] For example a single person under the age of 25 is expected to live on £53.45; two pints of milk is now £1, a loaf of bread from 80p to £1.35. Tragically many people who have been pushed into severe financial hardship by the recession, having been misled by the tabloid press into imagining there existed a generous welfare system, have been shocked by the reality of what living on benefits actually entails.
Cocooned in wealth and privilege all of their lives they have no conception of what life is like for the average person of the country they seek to govern; though as the examples above demonstrate they do know what it is like to dodge a fare and sponge of the taxpayer.
Meanwhile, like a clumsy First World War tank, the onslaught on the poorest and most disadvantaged continue. AJP Taylor said that whilst the labour movements in Western Europe preached class warfare, ruling elites practised it. The casualties in this war are not mere metaphors but real people whose lives are crushed. In an article in March this year Susan Poulton in the Mail Online[4] writes:-
‘…….there have been almost 150 deaths related to
sick and disabled citizens who fear being plunged further into poverty as our
benefit system - designed to protect the vulnerable - increasingly cuts people
adrift leaving them to fend for themselves.’
She tells of several cases
when claimants felt no other option than to take their own lives. Rather than
repeat these stories here I commend the article to you. The British Medical Journal
reports a clear link between unemployment, economic hardship and suicide rates.
In the year of my birth
the country was ruled by old Etonians who knew little and cared less about the
lives of the poor and marginalised. Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose[5]
I hope that these
realities make you angry, they certainly should. But if you are angry do
something, don’t just shake your head in front of the computer screen. Politics
matters, it is not a spectator sport, most importantly it is not just about
voting every five years. Politics is a constant process of engaging with the
realities of life, of fighting battles you thought, or wished were won. It
means becoming engaged with the world. Never be a spectator when it comes to
injustice. If all you do after reading this is to send an e-mail to your MP
then treat that as a start.
[2] For a full list of current
benefit rates see http://www.maternityaction.org.uk/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/benefitrates.pdf
[3] Mr Osborne’s fare was £189.50 the current rate for a single
person over 25 on Jobseekers allowance is £71 per week.