Letter: It’s never their fault
The Olympics has showcased the athletic and, indeed, musical talent of Great Britain as well as our pride in the NHS, multiculturalism and inclusivity as exemplified in the magnificent opening ceremony.
The Olympics has showcased the athletic and, indeed, musical talent of Great Britain as well as our pride in the NHS, multiculturalism and inclusivity as exemplified in the magnificent opening ceremony.
Surely now we must all endeavour to protect and advance these and other positive values.
All the established political parties compete for votes, hence we have Government politicians, due to popular demand, promising more funds for sporting activity after Michael Gove has taken £160 million from the school’s sports budget.
Both Labour and Conservatives have, since Thatcher’s tenure, allowed private profit-making out of the public services like the NHS and, when the public object, the opposition party cry foul.
Labour are outraged at the increase in fees for parking at the Princess Royal but hope we all forget that they supported them when first introduced. Copious tears are shed by our angry politicians regarding the shameful condition of Wellington railway station, but it seems they are too concerned with presentation rather than content.
They aim to convince us that they have extracted something useful for disabled people when, in reality, a new counter and notice board does nothing to make the station more accessible.
We must always remember it was both Labour and Conservative parties which agreed that companies, who always put profit before the needs of people, are best suited to run this public service. Ditto with Wellington Health Centre, which is run as a small business.
However I am sure that, in politicians’ surgeries all over Wellington, councillors are wringing their hands with just the right amount of concern to show they care about these issues and that none of it is their party’s fault.
Councillor Pat McCarthy
People First Party
Wellington
Comments for: "Letter: It’s never their fault"
Kath
Agreed. I'm sick to death of party politics, which is all about getting power, keeping it, getting more of it and blaming 'them over there' for whatever goes wrong.
This morning on the radio I've heard about the sale of playing fields, shock horror, then how even more were sold off under Labour, and round we go again with the finger pointing.
Apprenticeships the same.
'We've set up far more than Labour did!'
'Yes but these are just rebadged short training courses, meaning trainees can be paid only £2.60 an hour!'
All these discussion descend into squabbles over statistics and semantics while both sides try and claim the moral high ground.
A plague on all their houses.
rob harris
The problem is we vote for a party as a democracy and we vote for that parties mandate.However once elected the promised policies are abandoned, the manifesto is out of the window and they do whatever they want.The population is then left to fume and grumble in its beard for five years being totally unable to rectify things.This process goes on election after election.
What we want is the product we bought at the election and if it is not as advertised we need a system that enables us to return it.
That would be democracy.
We have to take new parties like yours councillor on trust that if elected you will do as you propose.
As a disillusioned voter it will take a lot to get me out of my chair come election day however nice the jam sounds.
Ken Adams
"What we want is the product we bought at the election and if it is not as advertised we need a system that enables us to return it."
Sort of agreed! But first we need real choice between the policies on offer - democracy is about choice not about elections – Then we need to force the local MP to represent their constituents and not the Party leaders, then we need the ability to recall MPs if they stray from their manifestos.
We must remove the power of the parties central machines where a small number of people have the power to to dictate everything.
The parties are not going to give us any of the above, they think and will try to tell us they are indispensable to democracy but in fact they working against the will of the people, we are going to have to take back our democracy.
Colin Dodd.
"People First Party"?? Have you just made that up?
I presume from your letter that you are touting your own party as a viable alternative to the existing administration. If so, what would you actually do about the current situation, other than criticise the present incumbents?
H. St. John Peasbody
Eh?
Watchdog
Contemporary politics is far too tribal. I think this has much to do with a lack of life experience amongst politicians and political hopefuls who go straight into politics without the background of a career in something else. In turn, they are then guided by civil servants, whose own life experiences are generally very narrow beyond the balance book or regulation. Would that some of our wounded soldiers could be persuaded to study politics.
IAN
Too right.Labour and Tories have for too long tried to divide people by race colour religion class etc.We are one nation who get along remarkably well together.
Peter
Not sure why 'watchdog' thinks that Civil Servants have narrow life experience, or why he thinks necessarily that wounded soldiers would have a greater life experience.
Whilst very senior Civil Servants might be somewhat out of touch, the same could be said of judges, senior military officers and indeed senior companry executives - few will have any real experience of how ordinary folk live. Perhaps 'watchdog' doesn't understand tha wide range of jobs that Civil Servants undertake - like so many others who contribute to these pages. The vast majority of Civil Servants and other public servants live and work in the real world. Talk to the people who staff our Jobcentres, DWP offices, prisons etc. if you think they're somehow separated from the 'sharp end' of life - you might be surprised...
One could also argue that with all due respect to them, those in the military are perhaps less likely to have knowledge of the normal day to day life in the UK. After all, in many cases they live their lives within a military 'bubble, living in military accommodation, often abroad, and being told what to do on a day to day basis. It's often a far from nice 'bubble' to live in, but by its very nature it is to an extent separate from the general populace. That separation, and in some cases near-institualisation it can cause, is one of the reasons why some struggle to find work when their military careers end.
I think we need people from a broad range of backgrounds to run our country. Sadly we are currently run by people who have led such privileged lives that they are completely out of touch with the way that ordinary people live. Their principal concern seems to be to maintain that privilege for their cohort at all costs to the rest of us.
Moving to some of the detail in the letter - did Councillor McCarthy not understand that GPs surgeries are actually private businesses - typically partnerships? I think we should all be very concerned that the vast majority of NHS funds under the current plans of privatisation by stealth are to be channelled through such businesses. It really can only be a matter of time before this lot bring back the Poor Law...
Kath
This is the first place I've seen the new layout. Don't like it, sorry - longer lines are known to be much harder to read. Vertical scrolling is preferable.
Ken Adams
Interesting Peter; I do not think it is the privileged background but career politicians which is the problem, perhaps we should not allow anyone to stand for parliament until they have reached a certain age and then only allow them to stand for two/three terms.
I think the letter writer was also concerned about GP surgeries being run as a business.