Gary's views

Gary's weekly views

Each week an article by Gary has appeared in the Plympton Plymstock and Ivybridge News in South West Devon. The articles are published here

Affordable Housing

When Jan and I bought our first house in Mutley in late 1979 it cost the princely sum of £13,250. Her parents lent us the deposit and the rest came from the Halifax. My starting salary as a newly qualified solicitor was £4,800pa. So our house was about three times my salary.

That same house today would be over £90,000 and young lawyers today start at just over £20,000.

My point is this. The house has increased by seven times in the years since, but the relevant salary has only gone up about four times. It has always been hard to get on the housing ladder for most of us, but it has never been harder than it is today.

In the South Hams the situation is even more dire. Average house prices: £200,000; average salaries: £17,000. So how can young people get to buy a house today to start their lives together? It is one of the biggest challenges we face locally.

Although house prices in London have fallen in recent months, they show no sign of doing so here. Reasons? This is a great place to live, warts and all; the developments at the University and Hospital are bringing higher salaried people down here; more people are working in London and commuting from here (believe it or not); more people are buying second homes in Devon; all these reasons help keep local prices high. Maybe at some stage the market will correct itself, as usually happens, but the affordability gap for first time buyers will remain. Already saddled with post-University debt, the future looks daunting for many.

The consequences are serious not just for the young people involved. Without affordable housing villages will grow old and die, labour mobility will dry up and many organisations will find it hard to recruit key workers on their doorstep. Plus it will pile pressure onto our roads, as people commute from affordable areas to jobs elsewhere.

What should policy makers do about it? First, recognise that this is a problem not just for London and the southeast, but for the West Country also, and include us in their solutions. Second, we have to find more creative incentives so that developers can provide more affordable homes. Third, we should charge full council tax on second homes and plough the money back into affordable homes.

I will be banging this drum at Westminster as hard as I can.

posted by Nigel on Monday, September 29, 2003

Gary's weekly views

Each week an article by Gary has appeared in the Plympton Plymstock and Ivybridge News in South West Devon. The articles are published here

Conference

For the first two days this week I chaired a conference in London for 180 talented young people trying to grapple with some of the deep-seated problems facing our society, on a quest for new solutions.

Some may say, why bother with that, when you represent the leafy suburbs. To which I reply: wake up, these social issues are a matter for all of us and if we carry on as we are we all risk being engulfed. In any event this constituency faces all kinds of challenges, as I know from my surgeries and postbag. If the only encounter we have with some of the unpleasant fruits of social exclusion is the burden on our tax bill, that should be enough to focus the mind, let alone the human misery.

Violent crime on the increase, heroin addiction and crack cocaine use spreading, 30,000 kids leaving school every year with no qualifications. 4000 children calling Helpline every day, some of them in real distress from abuse. The binge culture, gang warfare and desolate neighbourhoods that blights in many cities. Even in Plymouth you could hardly say we were winning the war against these modern day afflictions could you?

And why engage young people in this? Because many of the challenges we face come from the swirling changes in society that have taken place in recent years and it will take new ideas to tackle them. And it is no good just bringing a bunch of middle aged suburban dwelling stuffed shirts (like me) to grapple with some of the alienation experienced by today’s inner city youngsters. So we had speakers from the coalface, charity workers and professionals who spend their lives trying to make a difference. We had real life case studies. Senior politicians came and spoke, and also, more importantly, listened.

It is not about spending more money on welfare. Truthfully, we have never had so much spent as in recent years, and look at the results. If what we are doing is not working we have to find new solutions and try something different. So early intervention, making better use of the voluntary sector, more genuine local decision making, more police officers on the beat, better access to treatment for drug addiction were all part of our brainstorming.

These two days were just part of an ongoing attempt to try and shape a better future for those caught up in these twilight zones. Work in progress.

posted by Nigel on Friday, September 19, 2003

Gary's weekly views

Each week an article by Gary has appeared in the Plympton Plymstock and Ivybridge News in South West Devon. The articles are published here

TAX & SPEND

My 21 year old son received his first proper pay packet last month, and he was gob-smacked by the amount of tax and national insurance that was deducted. Welcome to the real world.

But he is not alone. My postbag now contains an ever-increasing number of genuine concerns about this year’s increases in national insurance, council tax and water rates. It is becoming particularly hard for people on fixed incomes, especially pensioners, to cope with these spiralling demands. And all this is at a time when the political focus is on delivering better quality public services.

So can we have better public services without breaking the back of the camel that has to pay for them?

There are those who want us to spend even more on public services and pay more in tax. Some of them were rumbling around the platform at the TUC conference this week, reminding us all that dinosaurs did not die out completely. But I think we are fast approaching saturation point. I simply do not think that many hard working families or fixed income pensioners, especially those just above the benefit line, can afford to pay any more. It does not matter whether it is dressed up as income tax, council tax, value added tax or any other backdoor tax. Tax is tax and it all erodes our ability to spend our own money as we see fit. And please remember, though it may not feel like it, these are the good times. The next recession will ask many questions of us all.

If my postbag is anything to go by, we are only a short distance from the tipping point when tax and spend becomes a big political issue again. But I would not like to see the pendulum swing too far towards a slash and burn backlash.

It is possible to strike a reasonable balance between quality services and affordability. But only if we constantly make sure that the provision is delivered in the most efficient way, by the organisation best placed to do it – whether private or public sector - maximising technology and not pandering to vested interests. This means embracing reforms that may not always be popular.

It would also be refreshing if governments of all colours occasionally asked themselves if they should be providing a particular service in the first place. “Do less and do it better” might turn out to be a winning formula.

posted by Nigel on Tuesday, September 16, 2003

Gary's weekly views

Each week an article by Gary has appeared in the Plympton Plymstock and Ivybridge News in South West Devon. The articles are published here

solution based politics

Never mind 1st January, September heralds the start of the New Year for most of us. Back from our hols, kids back to school, football season in full swing again and for 657 of us Parliament returns.

And this year I go back to Westminster with a fresh insight gained from our dog Arthur. He has been part of our family since his fence jumping antics caught our eye at a visit to the Gables Cat and Dog home. He is small and white but sadly born totally deaf, so the poor little chap can’t hear a thing. But when he is naughty – digging holes in our front lawn is a particular favourite – it is very hard to stop yourself from shouting at him, even though you know he can’t hear. Shouting at him is an entirely natural instinct and gives you the impression that you are doing something to make a difference. But it is utterly ineffective. The right strategy is to walk into his field of vision and make clear hand signals to him. 9 times out of 10 he obeys.

I have come to the view that opposition politics is a bit like that. It is tempting to spend all of our time ranting and raving about the government. It is the natural thing for politicians to do. It feels as though you are doing something useful. But it is utterly ineffective. The right strategy is to assess the problems facing us all, catch the attention of the voters and spell out the solutions.

With our rampant modern media, I am not sure that opposition politicians need to do much hollering these days. The press are pretty good at that themselves. Of course we must hold ministers to account at Westminster – that is vital. Forensic examination of policy is essential. But the most important thing of all – especially when we are surrounded by so much obvious failure – is to clearly set out what we would do to solve the problem. Very few people say to me they want more aggression in politics. Many people express the view that a more constructive approach from their elected representatives would be welcome.

They want solutions.

As we enter this new season, our country faces many challenges – not least how to make our antiquated public services deliver real quality and choice. Tough decisions face us. I return to London determined to remember Arthur and focus on solutions.

posted by Nigel on Tuesday, September 09, 2003