Devaluing unpaid care

 Seldom do I wander into the field of politics..., but sometimes something provokes me to put pen to paper (as we used quaintly to say). And two things have recently done that. One was the budget, and the other has been Ofsted. 

HMG profile

The urbane Jeremy Hunt's first budget contained some favourable news for me and some news which I welcomed for my family (until I learned the date of implementation for one particular measure). I suppose I should welcome the confirmation of the triple-lock on pensions, but that doesn't seem to me a priority (except as a vote catcher), but the section of the population that is really suffering from the cost of living crisis at the moment are young families - two of whom are represented in my family. So when the extension of childcare funding was trailed before the budget, I was pleased. However in the event it won't fully come into effect until September 2025 - which will not be of much use even to my youngest grandchildren. Of course the extension of the energy price cap for another three months, by when we all hope the price of energy will have come down, will help them and us. 

However my principle objection to the budget is its back-to-work agenda. It seems to me to be a move away from the family - which is the best basis for a society. We really did shoot ourselves in the foot with Brexit, didn't we? Our nurseries and hospitals, to say nothing of the farming and food industries, were dependent on EU citizens, for whom Brexit has created a hostile environment. Unsurprisingly they are reluctant to push through the barriers we've erected to keep them out. Now we desperately plead for workers from further afield to come, usually depriving domestic service sectors where their local needs are far more severe than our own. And so, while patting itself on its low unemployment level, the government is equally deperately seeking to suck every adult into the paid workforce. 

And what's the consequence? In due course every single child from the year dot will be entitled to funded care away from a parent for 30 hours a week. That will mean that, along with four others, they will have care from one adult. 

Now I have nothing against parents pursuing their own careers and fulfilling their own talents. Quite the contrary. But I do object to my government failing to reward parents caring for their own children. Had Mr Hunt included a provision to pay stay-at-home parents, acknowledging home care is quite as valid a contribution to the nation's good as nursery provision, I should have applauded him. And while he was about it, he could have properly funded baby and toddler groups and sure-start groups, instead of falsely "economising" on yet another social benefit. There's no doubt that this was an improvement on the autumn's kamikaze financial event. But, with its pension reward for the richest, who can afford to pay £60,000 (!) every year into their tax-free pension pot, it remains a monument to right-wing dogma. 

A very important article related to the Budget proposals has appeared today. 'Charities and academics criticised the move as “unconscionable”, saying it “devalues unpaid care” and would disproportionately impact single mothers, driving families into debt and vulnerable children into poverty.'

Ofsted must wait until my next post.

Sun and shadow

Another lovely day! As Marijke wittily remarked, "Good thing sunny days have remained tax-free - for now." Jane raised an interesting question over breakfast this morning: if fuel is taxed at more than 80p per litre now, how will the government get all that revenue when we're all driving electric cars? Anyway, for the moment, I'll enjoy the Brimstone and Peacock butterflies which occasionally dip into our garden, free as the air.

Well, I would have, had I not heard the old cricketer Geoffrey Boycott's comments about Michael Yardy's depression. His comments frankly made my blood boil. Not only was he very arrogant - "I've been, with respect, a better player" - seemingly unaware of the endless frustration he caused to England supporters by his interminable snail's-paced opening innings! He also showed himself totally lacking in emotional intelligence and empathy. ""I'm surprised, very surprised," he told the 5 Live Breakfast Show. "But he must have been reading my comments about his bowling, it must have upset him... Obviously it was too much for  him at this level. If any blame is attached it's partly to the selectors because, I'm sorry he's not good enough at this level." (Partly? Who else is to blame, Mr Boycott? You don't think he's to blame, surely?)  


Later, when it was pointed out to him that depression is an illness, he tried to excuse himself by saying that he wasn't a doctor and that he'd never had it himself, though he had been upset in 1978 when he'd lost his mother and had the Yorkshire captaincy removed within a couple of days. Then he'd played in Australia "like a lemming". It's clear that he hasn't a clue about the black dog (as Churchill described his depression). Although he's been defended on the grounds that he's an expert on cricket not medicine, he really has no excuse. A serious cricket commentator should have read Coming Back to Me, the brilliant batsman, Marcus Trescothick's autobiography, in which he vividly describes the depression which twice brought him home from overseas test tours, including this harrowing account of India 2006: Marcus Trescothick in India.  


One might "partly blame" the BBC for allowing his comments to reach the airwaves, but in this case I think the responsibility lies squarely on Geoff Boycott's shoulders. In my opinion, his batting was boring, but his broadcasting is plain boorish. It's time for him to be put out to pasture. The BBC have an excellent Yorkshire replacement in the shape of Michael Vaughan, who's well-informed, less opinionated, sympathetic and easier on the ear.  


I have friends who are plagued by depression. They can't "snap out of it", any more than I can pull myself together and walk and talk normally. They can establish a hard-won modus vivendi, but it is hard won, and depression constantly dogs their heels, ready to pounce. I am grieved for them when I hear such ignorant (or as the Times sports correspondent described them, "antediluvian") attitudes expressed and defended in public service broadcasting.


I was pleased to read what Sussex County Cricket Club (David Sheppard's county, by the way) had to say about their captain, “Sussex are very proud of Michael Yardy and very supportive of his decision, not only to come home but also to be prepared to go public with the reasons.



“He’s always been a person admired for his utmost honesty and integrity, and his courage in dealing with this issue emphasises that. As captain and one of our leading players, we’ll give him all the time and all the support necessary so that he can continue to lead this club forward.

"As a club we request that everybody, including both supporters and the media, respects his privacy as he looks to spend some time with his family, having been away for five months. In due course, Michael will make a statement and in the meantime the Club, its members and supporters wish him a speedy recovery." That's more like it.

Pledges, pledges, pledges

I was wryly amused by the juxtaposition of headlines on this morning's BBC website. Two pledges were reported one immediately above the other: "Osborne to pledge 'growth' budget" and "Defiant Gaddafi pledges victory". Now, as I sit out here in the garden in my shirtsleeves (!) at 4.30 in the afternoon, I've not really digested the budget - but who has yet, except the Treasury boffins who put it together? I gather there are crumbs of comfort for charities and a small refund of the money taken from science research in the autumn spending cuts, which sounds like long-term good news for the MNDA. Mark you, the growth forecast sounds pretty long term as well. As I understand it's particularly good news for the large multinationals, rather than small businesses. Maybe freeing up planning and other regulations might help them, though it sounds a bit worrying to me. However as one commentator, Niall Cooper, pointed out there was not a single mention of people in poverty - which is sad from a government pledged to protect the vulnerable. (Budget ignores plight of the poorest)

However I enjoyed my time in the sunshine. Jane's bulbs are out again, the scent of hyacinths surrounding the new French windows. Talking of which, last week we had our windows replaced by the excellent Nick Ponting and his merry men. We've had to sacrifice the bowed tops to the windows and have replaced wooden frames with plastic - against my professed aesthetic principles. But practicality won in the end. The workmen, I must say, were wonderful. Highly recommended. Here are two pictures. In the first you can see old-style downstairs with replacements upstairs; in the second work in progress downstairs. 

We're pleased with the result. It made an immediate difference in warmth and light, we thought. That's been appreciated as, before the sun shone on us, our boiler's been misbehaving again and the heating unpredictable. Not that that worried our guest at the weekend, the towering Tony Cheslett, our energetic friend from Stockport who introduced us to the joys of the Lake District. He's bagged all the munros. He is well known around the UK for corny stories and for the advice, "If you've got cold feet, wear a hat."