Medway Today column, 20th April 2001: No Care For Care Homes

“What was your job before you were a minister?” 

Well thank you for asking. Since you’re interested, I was a civil servant. I used to collect National Insurance contributions. It was hardly thrill-a-minute, but it had its occasional moments. Like the time when a woman sent back all her self-employment documents. “I am returning my card,” she wrote, 2 since I have had to cease trading due to unforeseen circumstances.” She was a clairvoyant! 

I know what it is like to be a public servant. It involves implementing politicians’ policies that you may find distasteful. It means being a Government’s whipping boys. 

With this background it is only natural for me to assume on the basis of comparable evidence that most employees of Medway Council are decent, honest, hard-working types. And the fact that my fiancée is about to take up employment with them has not affected this judgement one iota! 

I am favourably disposed towards public servants. It takes a lot for me to be critical of them. But pin back your ears, Medway Council, I am in a bone-picking mood. 

It is the council’s handling of recent issues to do with the elderly – especially the future of council care homes – that has disturbed me. 

Something is wrong when a colleague writes a letter expressing concern and gets a reply, claiming that he is exaggerating and scare mongering. 

Something is wrong when the same accusation pops up in a letter sent to Shaw’s Wood residents. Apparently the council has the truth, those who have raised protests don’t. 

Let’s see – if that is the case, why does the same letter implicitly admit that the consultation the council has been forced to concede will only be on its original proposals? Hardly open, is it? 

And why does the same letter claim that certain rooms can no longer be used for residential care? If you consult the Department of Health’s website (www.doh.gov.uk/ncsc/carehomes.htm) you’ll find these regulations don’t come in for over five years. The truth? The – er – whole truth? 

Then there is the wider context, the ‘Best Value’ review. Yes, our council has to do this – it’s the law. And if you’ve read Medway’s recent four-page glossy ‘Report Back’ that came through your letterbox, you’ll see the Best Value comprises four areas. But which one is highlighted every time? You answered correctly: cost savings. No wonder Medway Pensioners’ Forum has alleged that the sole criterion for Best Value in the area of ‘services for older people’ is to save £310,000. 

From a Christian perspective, several disturbing themes emerge: 

Firstly, truth. They say truth is the first casualty of war, and the council’s defensiveness in the face of criticism amounts to a spin-doctoring of the truth. 

Secondly, accountability. When council officials accuse concerned individuals of exaggeration and scare mongering, it sounds like they think the citizens are accountable to them. The reverse is true. And from a Christian angle, those in authority have a double accountability – not only to the citizens, but also to God, who placer them there to be his servants, promoting justice. 

Thirdly, God has a special concern for the weak, the vulnerable, and the poor. I believe a society is judged on the way it treats its most vulnerable members. If a hundred beds are to be closed in council care homes, then some frail elderly people face an involuntary move. I recently learned what the typical life expectancy is for such a person: it is eight weeks after the move. 

Last but not least, let’s talk money. I am not arguing for a blank cheque approach. Spending beyond our means is not Christian. There is a legitimate debate over how much we can afford our council’s budget to be. But the trumpeting of the recent relatively low council tax settlement will not have escaped your ears. It appeals to voters: the authorities are not stupid! We may criticise Medway Council – but by wanting everything on the cheap are we not colluding? If so, these are consequences we have brought upon ourselves. 

If you want to know more, church leaders have organised an open meeting at St. Margaret’s Church Hall in Rainham on Friday 4^th May at 7 pm.

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Copyright © David D Faulkner, 2006 except where other sources are attributed or noted as inspiration.