The questions posed by 2020
Today sees the launch of the final report of the 2020 Commission on the Future of Public Services, which has been based at the RSA and on which I served as a commissioner. The report has received a lot of coverage including two segments on this morning’s Today Programme.
I was on the second of these. As John Humphrys framed the report in terms of the Big Society, the discussion focussed largely on the question of whether citizens would be willing to be more engaged or to volunteer, for example, to run a local park or library.
As is to be expected with such a broad ranging – but thankfully short – report, different parts of the media have picked up different elements. If I had been given an open mike to say what I think are the most important points, especially as they relate to current policy debates, I would have chosen these three:
Not just the immediate fiscal squeeze but broader pressures, most obviously population ageing, mean we must get more for less if public service outcomes are to be maintained, let alone improved. This means we need citizens to be more engaged, more resourceful, and more pro-social. Already there is a great deal of good practice on citizen engagement but it is very patchy and fragile. We can’t expect more of citizens if we don’t give them more power either directly or by taking decisions closer to them, or by giving them better information about what they receive, how much it costs and how it might be done differently.
Privileged areas have got a lot of capacity to tap into in terms of the resources, expectations and abilities of their citizens. But it is deprived communities which can gain the most from a new relationship between the public sector and the citizen. So, even in the context of austerity, we need to invest in building the capacity of those communities. Building the Big Society requires a big dollop of redistribution.
Although the Coalition’s rhetoric about devolving power seems heartfelt (see this piece from David Cameron in the Observer), the reality is less convincing. In relation to welfare to work, schools planning and oversight, and NHS commissioning, local government’s influence is being further diminished. Given the centrality of worklessness, healthcare and education to any area’s prospects, to remove these issues from local democratic co-ordination makes effective joined-up strategy close to impossible.
My suspicion is that our report would be welcomed in Number Ten and ignored in the Treasury. It fits with the philosophy of the Coalition but not with the concrete policies emerging from many departments. The really big question now is whether the ideals of the Big Society will shape the strategy for the comprehensive spending review. If yes we would be in for a challenging but also very creative time in public services; if ‘no’ then the next few years may indeed – as the TUC suggests – be a period of pretty unmitigated pain and conflict.
Comments
7 Comments on The questions posed by 2020
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David on
Tue, 14th Sep 2010 4:02 pm
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Bernard Mason on
Tue, 14th Sep 2010 5:54 pm
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David Savage on
Tue, 14th Sep 2010 9:12 pm
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Rich H-S on
Tue, 14th Sep 2010 9:43 pm
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Jon Freeman on
Wed, 15th Sep 2010 7:12 am
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Olli Issakainen on
Wed, 15th Sep 2010 8:27 am
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Matthew Payne on
Wed, 15th Sep 2010 2:10 pm
I’m really not sure whether or not the objectives of the ‘Big Society’ can be fully achieved yet.
The knowledge and reasoning that has led us to the fundamental principles of the Big Society should be taught in schools before we can expect a realistic implementation. I somehow doubt that politicians themselves are capable of bringing about a new era of social-thinking.
I believe that significant changes must be made in our educational establishments as quickly as possible – the seeds of change must be planted.
Children should be taught what we all should be aiming for, as a society, over the next 50 years. Not only that, but why and how those conclusions have been reached.
We must be taught to be questioning, mindful & autonomous, not accepting & passive.
You say “Although the Coalition’s rhetoric about devolving power seems heartfelt “, do you really think that it is even remotely possible that it is no more than window dressing? My experience since 1945 leads me to cynicism. I have too many memories of previous devious PR rhetoric from the conservatives and I regard the liberals as irrelevant.
Very curious about the public ‘volunteering’ to run parks and libraries etc! I think they would, just look at what’s been created ‘voluntarily’ on the net – literally billions of dollars worth of open source programming being created by people giving their time because they are passionate about what they are contributing to. If such public services were no longer funded, I’m certain there would be an initial shock, but then people would step up … and what an awesome way to build community – Sav, New Zealand
A few quick points:
1.
Engaged citizenry encouraged by the distribution of power to act in measurable ways for the benefit of society as a whole. All good stuff but not really ground breaking thought. I imagine that similar theories have been had throughout history as tribes and nations look to establish means of co-operation for the common good. Given the calibre of the commissioners and the budget I expected more.
2.
Its pretty clear that a new social contract needs to be drawn up. The existing system is less effective than it could be in delivering the outcomes that society demands. So the 2020 Trust shifts in culture, finance and power. David in the first comment above talks about this change taking 50 years (sounds like a Chinese way of doing things). I was slightly nonplussed by the report. The required shifts are pretty self-evident. I would have liked to have seen some more direction.
3.
Listening to Michael Sandel http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00kt7rg giving his Reith Lectures provides a good philosophical framework to consider this problem. Morality, justice and knowledge provide the bare bones of big society. Then there is the problem of implementation. How do we measure the benefits provided to the individual, will social impact bonds really work? I felt that the commission fell between two stools of genuine philosophy and actionable insight. I enjoyed reading it but won’t be needing to refer back.
It seems to me that we are collectively in denial. State social and health services do not pay for themselves – they rest on the surpluses created by a healthy economy. We don’t have one of those. The state is not efficient, not responsive. It is not bureaucrats who are the problem, it is a bureaucratic system full of cumbersome processes which cannot reflect local needs. We have mammoths when we need mice.
Of course there is a fear that the old Tory anti-socialist mentality is back in disguise, but this should not blind us to the real problem. We are close to bankruptcy. We have rising debts that we do not know how to repay, and in which the optimistic approaches rest on renewed growth that is doubtful both in likelihood and in desirability from environmental and sustainability viewpoints.
We had better adapt. There is no more magic money. In a globe which has a 50 trillion dollar annual income and a 600 trillion dollar debt level we have reached the limits of the “making money” fantasy.
The only way out is for us to adapt. This requires a leap in thinking, and a refusal to pretend that the left-right flip-flop offers solutions. The question is not whether we should engage with the leaner, flexible social delivery models. The question is how that is done. It’s not easy, but it is certainly possible.
Jon Freeman
Britain needs a new economic model. In this new capitalist model state regulates finance sector more, but is in some respects somewhat smaller than today.
Where the power lies is absolutely critical to the success of citizen engagement-who and where is anything going to be done with what is wanted-otherwise this will end in a pile of disillusioned (ex)participants.
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