Little interest in Big Society

Most people in Britain are unwilling to get involved in their community despite wanting to engage more with local issues, research suggests. Only one in ten definitely intended to do voluntary work in the next two years, Hansard Society's post-election poll of 1,200 people found. While interest in politics was up, civic participation levels, key to the Big Society, were not. It said the Big Society must avoid "political associations" to succeed. 
 
David Cameron has described his flagship idea, which seeks to mobilise community-led initiatives in a range of areas, as his "mission" amid criticism that it is too vague and merely an attempt to paper over damaging cuts in public services. The Hansard Society's findings come from its annual Audit of Political Engagement, for which nearly 1,200 people in England, Scotland and Wales were interviewed.

The organisation, which seeks to encourage public involvement in politics, asked people how their attitudes to political involvement had changed since last May's election and what their future intentions were. It found that interest in politics and knowledge of political events had both increased since last May, with levels of interest hitting a record 58%. However, this was not matched by an equivalent increase in political engagement beyond voting.

While 69% of people said they were interested in how things worked in their local area and 51% felt getting involved could make a difference, only one in 10 said they were certain to do so in the next two years. Those most likely to put themselves forward were parents aged under 45 and from a high-income group. People were more likely to volunteer if they "felt strongly" about an issue, believed it was directly "relevant" to them and if it "affected" their street.

Wake Up Call

Wake Up Call Episode 1 play other version. from Health Emergency on Vimeo.

“In the 1970s, paedophilia was theorised as something fully in conformity with man”

Who would come out with such a thing? A guest on Richard and Judy? A Lib Dem MP? Some desperate barrister on behalf of his defendant? No. In his traditional Christmas address to cardinals and officials working in Rome, Pope Benedict XVI also claimed that child pornography was increasingly considered “normal” by society. “In the 1970s, paedophilia was theorised as something fully in conformity with man and even with children,” the Pope said. “It was maintained - even within the realm of Catholic theology - that there is no such thing as evil in itself or good in itself. There is only a ‘better than' and a ‘worse than'. Nothing is good or bad in itself.”

The Pope said abuse revelations in 2010 reached “an unimaginable dimension” which brought “humiliation” on the Church. Asking how abuse exploded within the Church, the Pontiff called on senior clerics “to repair as much as possible the injustices that occurred” and to help victims heal through a better presentation of the Christian message. “We cannot remain silent about the context of these times in which these events have come to light,” he said, citing the growth of child pornography “that seems in some way to be considered more and more normal by society” he said.

Outraged Dublin victim Andrew Madden insisted that child abuse was not considered normal in the company he kept. Mr Madden accused the Pope of not knowing that child pornography was the viewing of images of children being sexually abused, and should be named as such. He said: “That is not normal. I don't know what company the Pope has been keeping for the past 50 years.”

Thieves steal £700,000 of equipment from MoD

A plane fuselage, a clarinet, helicopter parts and dozens of night vision goggles have been stolen from the Ministry of Defence in the past 10 months. Peter Luff, a junior defence minister, revealed thieves had taken nearly £700,000 worth of cash and equipment since last May. 

The haul ranged from medals and ceremonial swords to a ship's anchor and Army-issue ration packs. Other loot included a bridge, a boat rudder, body armour, guns, marker lights and a flag. Night vision goggles worth £49,000 were stolen, as well as two batches of night sights, worth £88,000. The most expensive item stolen was a helicopter rotor tuner, worth £50,000, taken last November.

The figures, which only cover items reported stolen in the UK, were uncovered by Labour's Luciana Berger, who tabled a written Parliamentary question asking for a breakdown of items worth £100 stolen from the MoD since the Coalition took office. Ms Berger said: "I will be demanding assurances from ministers that these materials have not fallen into the hands of Britain's enemies. This is nothing short of a national disgrace."

Sarkozy gives celebrity philosopher unofficial foreign post

President Nicolas Sarkozy has given the waning influence of France's Left Bank intellectuals a huge boost by giving the country's best-known philosopher, Bernard-Henri Lévy the role of "unofficial foreign minister". BHL, as the celebrity open-shirted thinker is known in France, has been credited with playing an instrumental role in Mr Sarkozy's diplomatic offensive over Libya.

France was the first nation officially to recognise the opposition Libyan Transitional National Council as "the legitimate representative of the Libyan people", on March 10. And it transpires the man who brokered the meeting between the Council and Mr Sarkozy was Mr Lévy, a self-styled "militant philosopher".

BHL, who impresses and irritates in equal measure in France, met rebels while on a visit to Benghazi. He then returned and met Mr Sarkozy at the Elysée Palace, where he convinced the President the opposition were "good people". Mr Sarkozy's special adviser, Henri Guaino, who once dismissed the long-locked thinker as "a pretentious little ----- who doesn't love France", could only look on.

Alain Juppé, the new foreign minister, was widely reported to have been kept in the dark about Mr Sarkozy's decision to recognise the rebels, leading the press to dub Mr Lévy France's "joint" head of foreign affairs.

"This a great media stunt by Nicolas Sarkozy to rally a well-known, highly visible intellectual," said Rémy Rieffel, author of a book on intellectuals in France's Fifth republic.
Often mocked as a philistine, Mr Sarkozy has taken to inviting intellectuals, artists and writers to the Elysée for dinner to sound them out, according to Le Monde newspaper. One guest, Patrick Besson, a commentator and writer, said: "I got the impression I was his gym teacher without the gym."

Despite Mr Lévy's unprecedented political role, Mr Rieffel said that the influence of intellectuals in French public life cannot compare to their post-war heyday with the likes of Jean-Paul Sartre. "In France we are in a period of low tide in terms of intellectual debate. Over the past 15 to 20 years, intellectuals have lost a huge amount of power, which pales into comparison with the ideas bubbling twenty or thirty years ago."

Mr Lévy is often criticised – like Mr Sarkozy – for vanity and self-aggrandisement, and was once accused of making up an "on the ground" war zone report in Georgia.

Dame Vivien Duffield gives £8.2m to arts learning areas

Philanthropist Dame Vivien Duffield has given a total of £8.2m to eleven galleries, theatres and museums to create learning areas for children and young people. Tate Britain and the National Theatre are among recipients as are regional venues like Bath's Holburne Museum. The "creative learning spaces" would help children benefit from the "transforming power of our world class cultural organisations", she said. The Museum of Liverpool and London's Donmar Warehouse will also benefit.

The National Theatre will receive £2.5m from Dame Vivien's Clore Duffield Foundation for a new learning centre to open in 2014, as part of the institution's major redevelopment by architectural firm Haworth Tompkins. Tate Britain will receive the same amount to go towards creating two new education spaces, due to open in 2013, as part of a £45m renovation project by architect Caruso St John.

Some £500,000 each will go to the Donmar in London's Covent Garden and to Kensington Palace. And the Kettle's Yard gallery in Cambridge will receive £250,000 for a learning space with the same amount funding studios at Margate's Turner Contemporary and Manchester's Whitworth Gallery.

Dame Vivien said she was delighted to support "such outstanding projects created by some of the best architects, in museums, galleries and theatres across the country - even in a royal palace. Now more than ever, I believe that culture should be at the heart of our children's learning."

Elsewhere, £200,000 will fund a "Little Liverpool" interactive area for under-fives at the Museum of Liverpool while £125,000 each will go to projects at Bath's Holburne Museum and the Porthcurno Telegraph Museum. A learning centre at the Royal Shakespeare Company, also funded by the grants to the tune of £500,000, has already opened. A further £500,000 is being used to fund a teaching programme which includes theatre workshops.

In the current climate of financial cuts, the government has said it hopes philanthropists can play their part in the arts in filling the funding gap. Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt paid tribute to Dame Vivien's "stunningly generous package" hailing her as "a role model for philanthropists". "The focus on young people and learning and an emphasis on excellence in architecture and design is a thoughtful and enriching gift to present and future generations," he said.

‘God hates fags’ and Elizabeth Taylor

The Westboro Baptist Church, the fundamentalist movement that proclaims ‘God hates fags’, is to protest at the funeral of Elizabeth Taylor, writes James Park in Pink News.

The group, which is more accustomed to picketing the funerals of US service personnel killed abroad, blames the ills of the United States on the country’s decision to decriminalise homosexuality. Now the church says it will picket Elizabeth Taylor’s funeral because of her association with the struggle for LGBT rights.

 
One tweet from Margie Phelps, daughter of the church’s leader Fred Phelps, said: “She [Taylor] was a proud whore! Now she’s in Hell Version Final.0! #WBC will picket funeral!” Another said: “Her whoredoms enabled filthy fags! She now answers for her gr8 sin in hell! #WBC will picket funeral!” While a third said: “No peace for whore who taught proud sin! Too late for her to repent! #Westboro will picket funeral.” [not a fan then? – Ed].

Earlier this month, the Supreme Court, with a majority of eight to one, ruled that the church should be allowed to picket funerals by relying on their First Amendment rights to free speech.

The son of Fred Phelps has claimed that his father beat his family until they bled. Nate Phelps, who has been estranged from his family for more than thirty years, is writing a book about his experiences growing up in the Kansas church [send your suggestions of a title for the book to Norman Tebbit Publishing, Sewer Street, London W1 - Ed].

Wales lose Gareth Bale to injury ahead of European qualifier against England

Gareth Bale is out of Wales' Euro 2012 qualifier against England at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday after suffering a hamstring injury. The Football Association of Wales says in a statement the injury was suffered before Bale joined the Wales squad. The 21-year-old Tottenham Hotspur winger did not train on Wednesday. "Due to a hamstring problem, Gareth Bale has had to withdraw from the Wales squad to face England," a Football Association of Wales statement said.

"He felt tight last week during training with his club. After playing 90 minutes on Saturday he felt some muscle tightness. Initially, this was expected to be muscle soreness after playing his first game. On joining up with the Welsh squad he was kept off his feet in training for two days to recover. As he still felt tight in the warm-up on Tuesday, Gareth was pulled out of the session. He did not train at all on Wednesday and was sent for a scan. The scan revealed that Gareth Bale picked up his injury last week."

Athena poster's tennis player revealed

Elizabeth Taylor

1932 - 2011

Save EMA Campaign drafts court action

A legal challenge offers fresh hope to 300,000 students who face being stripped of their education maintenance allowance (EMA), campaigners said yesterday. The Save EMA Campaign announced it was drafting a court action against Education Secretary Michael Gove, arguing that his decision to axe the vital grants breached a contract. The case will be on behalf of students who began two-year courses last autumn, with a "legitimate expectation" that they would receive EMA until they had completed their studies.

More than 300,000 teenagers are in that position - half the total number receiving EMA - including around 19,000 in the North-East and a further 3,500 in North Yorkshire. The government announced it was axing EMA - weekly payments of up to £30 to help sixth formers from poorer homes stay on in education - in October, having previously stated the allowance would survive.

Hopes of a legal challenge rose when Mr Gove lost in the High Court, earlier this month, over his decision to scrap the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme. That move was condemned as an "abuse of power". Significantly, lawyers have suggested the new case could target Mr Gove over a "failure to consult" before axing EMA - the very reason he lost on BSF.

James Mills, head of the Save EMA campaign, said: "We're saying, 'a deal's a deal.' These young people have signed a contract and the government should honour it. Research, by the University and College Union (UCU), shows that almost 40 per cent of students wouldn't have started their course without EMA, so that's a large amount of people who will feel betrayed by this government."

Students sign an EMA contract, which commits them to rules on attendance, punctuality and achievement in return for the payments - imposing requirements on the government, campaigners say. The campaign is working closely with Unison, the public services union, to find case studies to take to court, in the same way as six local councils spearheaded the legal action against the BSF axe.

Another legal action would further damage Mr Gove, who has also come under fire because of embarrassing U-turns over the funding of school sport and the Bookstart scheme, to encourage children to read. The Education Secretary insisted EMA had to go because its £500m cost is too high, but has yet to explain how a different scheme will operate.

One in six homeless hostel beds under threat

Supporting People cuts could lead to one in six of England’s homeless hostel beds becoming unavailable from April, Homeless Link has warned. A survey conducted by the homeless charity umbrella group suggests that of the 84 councils who have announced their reductions to Supporting People funding, 41 per cent are cutting a greater percentage than the overall cut they received from central government for 2011/12.

The report Counting the Cost of Cuts, released last night, made up of information from 500 homelessness services (30 per cent of all homelessness services) predicted this will mean a reduction of 16 per cent (1,807) hostel beds being lost across the country. Homeless Link claimed homeless service providers are facing an average total funding cut of 25 per cent and the cuts councils plan to make to their Supporting People budgets ranges between 1 per cent to 45 per cent.

Based on its findings, the report estimated:

22 per cent of accommodation services would close

46 per cent of floating support services would reduce frontline staff

36 per cent of projects would reduce their support services

The greatest discrepancies between the cut to Supporting People budgets and what councils will receive from the government are in Rochdale, Kingston upon Hull, Kensington and Chelsea, Lewisham, and Nottinghamshire and Nottingham. Homeless Link said it is likely the most beds will be lost in these areas.

Jenny Edwards, chief executive of Homeless Link, said: ‘Councils that have taken action to protect services that support homeless people recognise [their] value. But others are making cuts that make no long-term sense, are disproportionate, hit some of their most vulnerable residents and cannot be justified.

‘The evidence is clear, if you cut homeless services today, communities are highly likely to pay tomorrow - seeing higher rates of addiction, ill health and anti-social behaviour.’ She called on people to campaign for their local services that support homeless people and contact their councillors about the issue.

Mark Oaten: rough trade to fur trade

Former Liberal Democrat MP Mark Oaten, who quit parliament after cheating on his wife with a rent boy, has taken a job promoting the fur trade. Mr Oaten, 47, is now the chief executive of the Surrey based International Fur Trade Federation that promotes the industry and gives it a "factual image". The move was today branded a "disgrace" by anti-fur pressure group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta).

Let’s face it, the middle-aged, gay scally look was never going to work

In 2006 Mr Oaten, the father of two daughters, who is married to Belinda, was embroiled in a sex scandal involving a rent boy that forced him to quit as his party's home affairs spokesman. He stood down before the 2010 general election and his Winchester seat was won by the Conservatives.

Mr Oaten was considered to be on the right wing of the Liberal Democrats and he made a failed bid for the party leadership shortly before the News of the World published the scandal, which he blamed at the time on his hair loss and a mid-life crisis.

In a statement, Mr Oaten, who voted against the 2004 fox hunting ban, said: "I am very proud to be joining such a successful and historic trade. Although we are growing from strength to strength, there are plenty of issues throughout the world that I will need to focus on. It is also important that we do more to promote fur internationally. I served for thirteen years as a member of parliament in the UK and for four years on the Council of Europe, so I know how important effective lobbying can be."

Mr Oaten will travel extensively in the role, meeting and lobbying on behalf of the federation which has links to 35 countries. A spokeswoman for Peta was highly critical of the former politician's new job and claimed the fur trade continues to abuse animals.

The group said in a statement: "(Mr) Oaten, who has identified his hair loss as the trigger for his mid-life crisis and ensuing sex scandal, is now attempting to overcompensate for his baldness by promoting an industry that violently skins fur-bearing animals, often while they're still fully conscious. Fur is a disgrace and so is this former MP, so it's a fitting choice to appoint him the new "face" of the International Fur Trade Federation."

French local elections leave Sarkozy's party in disarray

Nicolas Sarkozy's ruling UMP party is in disarray after the extreme-right Front National (FN) made historic gains in the first round of local elections in France. The FN capitalised on the surge in popularity for its new leader, Marine Le Pen, by taking 15% of the vote. The party, which until now had no local councillors, will see around 400 candidates go through to the second-round vote on 27 March. 

More than 30 FN candidates topped the poll in areas including parts of Nice, Marseille and the Cote d'Azur. Many will face a run-off against Socialist party figures, leaving the right-wing UMP stumped as to whom to tell its support base to vote for. In the past, the right and left have grouped together in an unofficial republican alliance to block the far right. But the official party line, led by the UMP leader, Jean-Francois Copé, is not to direct its supporters how to vote. Copé said the party refused any alliance with the FN, but it could not recommend a "republican front" because that meant voting for the Socialist party.

Critics said the UMP was vacillating, not wanting to offend the far-right electorate, which it would like to win over in the 2012 presidential elections. But some ministers broke ranks. Valérie Pécresse, the higher education minister, said she would rather vote for the left in the case of a run-off against the FN. The first-round election result was seen as a warning to Sarkozy, who recently recorded his lowest ever approval ratings of 29%. Around 2,000 local councillor seats are up for grabs. With abstention at more than 55% in the first round, on 20 March, the Socialist party won 26% of the vote and the UMP 19% – a bruising in the last electoral test before Sarkozy's battle for presidential re-election.

In a long interview with the Guardian, Le Pen said there was discontent and "a desire for revolution in France" similar to the revolts in the Arab world.

Gilbert and George: Cottage industry

While describing the great changes in Spitalfields during the forty years that they had lived there, Gilbert and George recently noted that the Jewish off-licence was turned into a Hindu music centre and the gentlemen's toilet became an Indian restaurant. Of the latter, George notes: "They said 'It's eat in or takeaway.' I said 'It always was.'"

Here we gung-ho again

I had read, sickeningly, nothing but praise for Cameron's war speech in the House of Commons on Friday. I was surprised therefore to read two separate articles, in the Telegraph of all places, doubting the wisdom of sending British troops to man the no-fly zone over Libya.

In his regular Saturday piece, in which he usually condemns anything that wriggles to the left of far right, Simon Heffer starts with an enormously satisfying attack on Lady Warsi's appearance on Question Time:

"Supplementing her inadequate grasp of a bad Central Office brief with globules of sentiment, emotion and downright pig ignorance, Lady Warsi was taken apart by Kelvin Mackenzie, the former tabloid editor, in a manner that stunned even me."

He goes on to question why we are getting involved in the Libyan conflict, and at what expense:

"As I wrote last Wednesday, there is one exigency that should compel us to intervene in the Middle East: the threat to our economy and way of life that would be posed by a severe depletion of the supply of oil [!]. Unless that happens we are on the sidelines, our withdrawal from the world signalled by running down our Armed Forces and by deciding, instead, to be a lavishly funded welfare state. However, even if we do have an oil crisis, the defence review has denuded us of the capacity to do anything.

If we wish to protect our interests in that eventuality, we must reopen the defence review without delay. If that means scrapping the overseas aid budget, cutting the self-indulgence of local government or closing a few more quangos, so be it. If it embarrasses a Prime Minister whose poor judgment is ruthlessly exposed by such an about-turn, so be that too. At the moment, we are just making fools of ourselves: but one day, our very ability to survive as a serious country could be at stake."

Meanwhile, the editorial is similarly grumpy:

"He [Cameron] believes that we cannot afford to have a failed state threatening the stability of North Africa. Mr Hague goes even further, arguing that Britain has a moral obligation to assist those who seek the democratic privileges that we enjoy in this country.

It is for this reason that the Government has now ordered the RAF to draw on its depleted reserves to send Tornado and Typhoon fighters to enforce the no-fly zone. Like the other Services, it has been badly hit by the savage defence cuts the Government implemented last year when it said it wanted to avoid foreign entanglements. The lesson should be obvious: if Mr Cameron now wants to adopt a higher profile in world affairs, then he should reopen the defence review and give the Armed Forces the resources to back up his ambitious agenda."

Neither of them, however, mention the incongruities of taking the country into war at a time when benefits for the poor and disabled are being cut, centres for rape victims are being closed and legal aid is being withdrawn for millions of people nationwide. Why are we going to protect the citizens of another country when we can’t even look after our own?

Libya 'to halt military action'

Libya's government is declaring an immediate ceasefire, hours after a UN Security Council resolution backed a no-fly zone over the country. Libyan Foreign Minister Mussa Kussa said the ceasefire was intended "to protect civilians". The UN resolution supported "all necessary measures" to protect civilians, short of an occupation.

Western powers had been discussing how to enforce the no-fly zone. Before the announcement of the ceasefire, fighting between troops loyal to Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi and rebel forces was reported to be continuing.

Cameron calls in cabinet as UN votes for no-fly zone over Libya

David Cameron called a cabinet meeting this morning and will make a statement to the House later on Libya, a spokeswoman said on Thursday. Earlier, the United Nations Security Council voted to authorise a no-fly zone over Libya and "all necessary measures" - code for military action - to protect civilians against leader Muammar Gaddafi's forces. The spokeswoman added: "We have obviously been contingency planning to be ready to support a resolution. We are a permanent member of the Security Council and will play a role (in enforcing it)."

The main details of UN Resolution 1973, authorising action to protect Libyan civilians from Muammar Gaddafi, are as follows:

• The resolution expresses the UN's "grave concern at the deteriorating situation, the escalation of violence, and the heavy civilian casualties", condemns "the gross and systematic violation of human rights, including arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances, torture and summary executions" and says the attacks against civilians "may amount to crimes against humanity" and pose a "threat to international peace and security".

• A no-fly zone is "an important element for the protection of civilians as well as the safety of the delivery of humanitarian assistance and a decisive step for the cessation of hostilities in Libya".

• It "demands the immediate establishment of a ceasefire and a complete end to violence and all attacks against, and abuses of, civilians" and "that the Libyan authorities comply with their obligations under international law ... and take all measures to protect civilians and meet their basic needs, and to ensure the rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian assistance".

Begging to differ in Westminster

As far back as 1530 the Vagabonds Act introduced the concept of licensing begging, writes Liz Davies in the Morning Star. Only the elderly and the disabled were entitled to a licence - anyone begging without a licence committed a crime.

Local authorities - from medieval parishes to modern borough councils - have always tried to move the poor away from their own bailiwicks, to distinguish between the so-called deserving and undeserving poor and to criminalise those thought to be undeserving. The famous Elizabethan Poor Law of 1601 set up almshouses for those unable to work and houses of industry or workhouses for the able-bodied poor. 

The so-called idle poor would be sent to a house of correction, or prison. The system was funded by local parishes. Naturally each parish was anxious to minimise its own responsibilities. Beggars could be prevented from entering a parish in the first place, so as to avoid a potential responsibility towards them. Although the Poor Law was abolished in 1948, we still criminalise begging and homelessness.

The Vagrancy Acts deem certain "idle and disorderly" persons to be "rogues and vagabonds" if they commit criminal offences. Once they are deemed "rogues and vagabonds," upon further conviction they may be deemed "incorrigible rogues" and face the risk of imprisonment. The first piece of legislation requiring local authorities to help homeless people, including homeless children, was only passed in 1977.

Nowadays people sleeping rough are those who aren't entitled to housing from the state. They might be childless able-bodied adults, adults who do have children or vulnerabilities but are deemed to have "become homeless intentionally" by local authorities, or migrants who aren't entitled to public assistance.

Housing benefit cut for 450,000 disabled people

Government figures show about 450,000 disabled people will see their incomes cut under one of the changes planned to housing benefit. Campaigners fear thousands will be forced from their homes. From April 2013, housing benefit for working age people in social rented homes will be linked to the size of property councils believe they need. Ministers say they want housing benefit claimants to choose to rent properties they can afford when in work.

An assessment from the Department for Work and Pensions shows the change will leave 450,000 disabled people an average of £13 a week worse off. Ministers want to encourage housing benefit claimants to move out of council and housing association properties that are too big for their needs, and to make savings in a housing benefit bill that has almost doubled to £21.5bn in a decade.

But Labour's work and pensions spokeswoman Karen Buck said the changes would unfairly affect disabled people. She said: "If you are going to try and force them out with really proportionately swingeing cuts to their weekly income but you can't even guarantee that you're going to be able to offer them an alternative, then we are looking at a recipe for chaos."

The government has already delayed a proposal to remove money designed to fund travel for disabled people in residential care from the existing Disability Living Allowance. The DLA is to be replaced with a new benefit under plans set out in the Welfare Reform Bill. One disability campaigner said some had told his organisation they were left suicidal about changes to their benefits.