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The thought behind it all is that the Government will start to take a step back from involvement in people’s lives i.e. charities, schools, pubs, libraries etc. David Cameron wants the man and woman on the street to take control of their own lives and take control of their local community, rather than central Government making all the decisions.
The idea is good, except it has been conceived with rose tinted glasses. I don’t know if Mr Cameron has been aware, but there has been a crippling recession over the last couple of years, meaning the amount of money people have to spend is much less than four or five years ago. The biggest obstacle with The Big Society then, is that for people to be able to run their own local communities, they are going to have to put their hands in their pockets and spend money, and in some cases spending in considerable amounts.
But this is just not going to happen! People do not have the resources, time or more importantly money to save a pub, build a school, run a youth club or open a library. Whats worse, is the charities that depend on Government money probably won’t be able to find alternative incomes. If the Government stops funding charities like it plans to do, the general public won’t be able to fill the gap as they don’t have the funds now to be able to do so.
The Big Society is more like The Big Withdrawal. The Government has to do all it can to cut back on public spending, which is exactly what this is, except it has been dressed up as giving more power to the general public, but I think people are already seeing through the disguise.
