A recent article suggested that people in the UK will vote for the party which promises to help their children and their elderly parents and relatives. I don't doubt the truth of this assertion but question the realism underpinning it.
Would these same people be so keen to cast their vote if they were told the true cost? I suspect not. Of course, from a purely Socialist angle, we should be looking to the State to provide for those in greatest need of help. It is true to suggest that the State has failed successive generations in education. Education of the parents and education of their children. Socially, we have become less socially cohesive as more and more of us have sought to own our homes and seek work away from our families. This has been caused by a variety of factors.
In Wales where I live, the Assembly Government strives for every child to be taught the Welsh language. When they leave school, the majority seek employment in England. If they return, their proficiency in the Welsh language has become eroded. While they have been away, their families have become divided. The parents they leave behind get older and with age comes illness. Illness demands care. Where once the parents might have been cared for by their own children, this is increasingly becoming the ideal rather than the reality. So why is it that there are no longer the jobs in places like Wales. Why is it that the Public Sector has been allowed to become so big while the private sector in Wales has become something of a novelty? There are many reasons for this. The real growth of the former was ushered in by the prudent Chancellor of Tony Blair in 1997. The reason why the private sector has become so negligible is that Wales has become too unattractive for business. With a poor transport infrastructure and more regulations than you could shake a stick at, Wales has effectively been closed for business for a couple of generations now. Take a walk down your local high street if you don't believe me. Take a look at your local farming community because the evidence is there for all to see. We gleefully welcome supermarkets with open arms knowing full well how much of their produce is imported from abroad.
So what about the care of our elderly because the headlines today have revolved around the burgeoning problem of dementia. Dementia is not new. Granted, there is much more of it but that is because people are living longer more than any other reasons. Historically, many would argue that dementia care was better in the past than it is now. Granted the medical side of care is more advanced but I wonder if the same could be claimed for the actual human care? Before it's closure in 1995, the former North Wales Hospital had become a centre for care of the elderly with dementia being a big part of it's work load. Although it had started life as a mental asylum, it had evolved to become a 1700 bed hospital with a large focus on care of the elderly. This had the additional effect of freeing up vital bed space at the local district general hospital. It is not hard to imagine what happened when it closed in 1995. The effect on elderly care in North Wales has been further exacerbated with the closure of a a succession of community hospitals. It seems that in Wales, the State has absolved itself from caring for the elderly. It certainly puts a lot less in to this are than it did 20 or 30 years ago.
The problem now is that for all their headline grabbing promises, none of the political parties have the necessary funds to supply the care of children and the elderly which people are looking for. In the same way, they no longer have the funds to allow people to retire at age 65. Maybe we've got to the point where the State has admitted that it's capacity to help us is limited in spite of the amount we pay in tax. Whoever promises us the earth in 2015 will not be able to deliver it so we would be better served seeking the answers to our problems within. An old saying goes like this, "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day but teach a man to fish and you feed him for life". That is where the education comes in. It is not the sole responsibility of the State. It is far more the responsibility of the family. In China, an old saying claims that it takes an entire village to bring up a child. We are no different to China. The only difference is that for a variety of reasons we have lost touch with our families and communities. Until we re-connect with the latter, we can call for the Government to help us all we like but the onus will remain firmly with ourselves. I doubt whether this would garner any votes but at least it's a more honest approach than that being drawn up by the political elite.
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