Report to the People
Exciting Week
Well what a boring week that was.
Apart from Peter Mandelson resigning; John Reid becoming Northern Ireland Secretary; Helen Liddell becoming the new Scottish Secretary; the threat of a back bench rebellion in the Scottish Parliament over road maintenance contracts; and the Liberal Democrats nearly bringing the coalition down over long-term care of the elderly, nothing much happened.
Certainly the most theatrical episode was Peter Mandelson’s sudden exit. But however exciting or dramatic, it does not, to be frank, have much significance for you or I.
I doubt that even John Reid’s move to the toughest job in the Westminster Government and the consequent elevation of Helen Liddell (from just up the road in Langbank) to Secretary of State for Scotland, while of intense interest to the political world, is the talk of the steamie.
The same was true of another of the week’s political stories.
Much concern was voiced in the Scottish Parliament over the tendering process for the maintenance contracts on trunk roads. Currently, local councils carry out this work. During the most recent tendering process, however, the contracts were awarded to a number of private companies.
This generated much debate and discussion in the political world. But I suspect that most people have far more important things to worry about than who owns the gritters or cleans the road signs - for example ensuring that the money they pay in taxes is spent efficiently and effectively.
These two issues contrast starkly with the biggest issue of the week: long term care of the elderly. This is not a squabble between politicians about politicians. This is a real issue which affects many of us. Indeed, I remember writing in this column in October last year, "it is our duty, as a civilised community, to make sure we treat our pensioners with dignity and respect."
Essentially, last week’s debate was over whether personal care should be free to all elderly people or means tested. The feelings around this debate were so strong that the Executive agreed to bring proposals before the Parliament to build on what has already been achieved and ensure free personal care is available for all those in need.
In a week when the world of politics became obsessed with itself, I am glad such an important issue was addressed. As politicians, we would do well to remember that what excites the political world is not always what matters in the real one.
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