There are many challenges that face Britain today. Social and
economic inequalities are still rife in society from people having to use food
banks, to the issue of low wages and the problems caused by welfare reforms.
Britain needs to rediscover its spirit of social justice, and its concern for
the most disadvantaged members of society. When I first got interested in
politics it was over the issues of civil liberties and my opposition to the War
in Iraq. There was only ever one party that spoke to me on these issues and
that truly inspired me, the Liberal Democrats. But that's not all, in the mid-2000s,
the Lib Dems were the only main party willing to stand up for social justice in
the face of the social hardships ignored by New Labour and caused by the
Conservatives that came before them.
Today, four
years into the Coalition between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats,
that spirit of social justice may seem like a world away. The Coalition has
adopted some progressive policies such as raising the income tax threshold, the
pupil premium and most recently free school dinners for the most disadvantaged
pupils. Although there have also been some regressive policies such as the NHS
reforms, welfare reforms such as the “bedroom tax” and an economic strategy
that has placed too much of the burden of austerity on the poorest.
What is
often missed by media commentators is the excellent work done by members of the
Social Liberal Forum in standing up for the traditional social liberal values
that the Lib Dems have had for over a century. The SLF has been vital in
calling for reforms to the government's economic policy to ensure that it
focuses more on a house building stimulus and taxing the wealthy and less on slash
and burn cuts to public services. Furthermore, they have consistently backed
Lib Dem motions opposing the NHS reforms, opposing food poverty, backing a
living wage, opposing the bedroom tax and being critical of the approach to
free schools. If the spirit of social justice is to be found anywhere within
the Liberal Democrats; it is to be found within the Social Liberal Forum.
The Social
Liberal Forum is on the verge of having elections to its ruling council and I
am very eager to run for a position on that council. I have always been
somebody who has proudly stood on the left of politics and I firmly believe
that the Liberal Democrats are at heart a centre-left party. The SLF represent
the historic centre-left traditions of the Lib Dems. As someone who has always
been committed to social justice; I am very proud to be a member of the SLF. It
is vital that we stand up for the poorest and most disadvantaged people in our
country, many of whom lack a voice and are alienated by political parties who turn
a blind eye to poverty and inequality.
Some might say that there's no place
for an advocate of social justice in the Liberal Democrats today. However, I
understand my Liberal history; the Liberal history of social liberalism that
goes back to 1906. In 1942, the social security report by the Liberal Party
social reformer, William Beveridge ensured that there was a national minimum,
beneath which no one would be allowed to fall. The defining feature of social
liberalism is the belief that social justice can enable the individual to reach
their full potential. In this regard, Beveridge’s welfare state has done more
to free people than any other institution since the establishment of democratic
governments. The Beveridge report has been fundamental in freeing people from
poverty, unemployment, ill-health and a lack of education. I am very proud of
the history of great social liberals such as William Beveridge, John Maynard
Keynes and David Lloyd George as well as the great Lib Dem titans of British
politics such as Roy Jenkins, Shirley Williams and Charles Kennedy. This
history proves that the Liberal Democrats are a centre-left party of social
justice and social liberalism. And if I get elected I would hope to continue
that tradition.
There are many problems facing
Britain today and social liberalism has many of the answers to them. Social
liberalism rejects the false choice of choosing between promoting liberty or
tackling inequality; simply put you cannot achieve one without the other. A
more just society is a more free society. To be free from poverty is just as
important as being free from the authoritarianism of the state. You cannot
truly enjoy freedom if your capacity to achieve and develop is held back by
poverty and inequality.
Hence, the powers of the state must
be kept in check; but also there must be a progressive alternative to the free
market consensus of the last thirty-five years. Social liberals must promote a
living wage, land taxation, British federalism, community politics and
workplace democracy especially through cooperatives. Above all, social liberals
must aim to give a voice to the poor and the disadvantage and ensure that they
have a stake in British society again. A stake that free market economics has
denied them.
If I get elected to the Social
Liberal Forum Council, I will stand up for social freedoms, social justice, the
rights of the poor and the rights of people with disabilities (of which I am
one). I aim to represent the Liberal Democrats’ historic centre-left principles
of social liberalism. Overall, I hope that the Liberal Democrats can be a party
that can once again stand up to injustice. This can only be done through the
great work of the Social Liberal Forum; great work to which I hope to
contribute.
