Big Society, Great Society?

Big Society, Great Society?

Like so many people, I am trying to work out three things. How progressive is our new Prime Minister, how do his values fit with the (somewhat rightish) Lib Dems in his Cabinet and what on earth is the Big Society all about. Is it just me who wonders at the coincidence that ‘Big Society’ is such a similar name to Liberal Democrat Lyndon Johnson’s (and partly JFK’s) Great Society program? Coincidence? Indeed Cameron invoked JFK on launching the Big Society http://news.scotsman.com/news/Tory-leader-David-Cameron-.6224215.jp

And on many other occasions in his progressive past Cameron quoted JFK in suggesting we need to tilt towards a wellbeing economics http://www.citizenrenaissance.com/the-book/part-three-where-are-we-heading/chapter-seven-the-rise-of-ecological-economics/ . Is this showing how liberal (socially not economically neo-liberally) Cameron is? Is it showing he fancies himself as a bit of a looker and man about town, a JFK of our times? Or does it mean we can hope for true renewal of what it means to be Conservative? And a Compassionate Civic Communitarian Cameroon?

Its certainly the most interesting new narrative to come out of UK politics for a long time. And good for Cameron for keeping going with it despite the fact that it fell flat on voters doorsteps. We know that Conservatives are not keen on ideology. And indeed the last Conservative ideology almost killed the party. But arguably that was because that ideology (Thatcherite no-society neoliberalism) was not fit for our times. But my hunch is that citizens are thirsty for a new narrative and vision if its empowering and well communicated enough.

The true nature of the Big Idea – sorry Big Society – is yet to emerge but lets hope Davis is wrong to be so cynical http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1297289/David-Davis-makes-Brokeback-Mountain-slur-coalition-leadership.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Since first saying the idea was ‘hollow’, the Deputy PM now thinks its the perfect example of the ‘liberal society’. Lets hope its more liberal on the social side than the economics as its so far missing any real analysis of the clear failure of free-market neoliberalism. Its also missing the Oakeshott concept of the role of the ‘ship of state’ in intervention to deal with economic ‘maladjustments’ .

Currently it suggests far to much assumption that ‘too much Government’ is the cause of broken-Britain. Its intellectually poor if its dogmatically blind to the responsibility of Casino-Capitalism http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2009/jan/30/davos-religion laissez-faire economics and badly set-up markets. But I guess its an idea in the forming.

I suspect a ‘big society’ will not work without government intervening significantly, if only to undo the problems caused by previous governments. As Will Hutton has said, “the state is not the enemy. Deployed correctly it is our friend. A few Red Tories have got this message.”

Can we expect the Big Society to rise to the challenges of our times http://www.citizenrenaissance.com/the-book/part-one-three-seismic-shifts/ ? Lets hope so for all our sakes.

see discussion here also on ResPublia blogsite

Posted by Jules in Blog