With the welfare state practically made dysfunctional by its own success in the post-war decades, visionary politicians struggle to come up with a new socio-economic model that would help western European societies prosper socially through a bond of solidarity that overcomes economic disparities. But is a new socio-economic model really taking root in Europe?

British Prime Minister Theresa May made a strong policy statement at the beginning of the year when she announced that her government would be promoting the concept of a ‘Shared Society’.

Economists, sociologists, the media and ordinary people have been trying to understand what this slogan would really mean.

Is this another sound bite that would flop – just like David Cameron’s ‘Big Society’ promise did a few years ago? Is there really any difference between the concept of a ‘Shared Society’ and a ‘Big Society’?

A rather cynical senior Whitehall source told sections of the British media: “Margaret Thatcher didn’t believe in society; Cameron wanted the Big Society to replace the State; we believe there is a role for government, but it must be shared with the public.”

I see this comment as being rather cynical because contrary to popular belief Thatcher did not in fact destroy the welfare state – even if she did give rise to the practice of future Labour and Tory administrations to ration resources that made up the fabric of the social safety net that was the essence of the welfare state.

Speaking to journalist Sophy Ridge on Sky News, May said: “I was talking to somebody earlier today and they were making the point that in the workplace, if you break your arm and you go in with your arm in plaster or in a sling, people will come up and talk to you about it.

Free health and education is a basic principle for a fair society. But these will just be warm words unless they are backed by a steely political determination to underpin these public services with viable financial backing

“If you have a mental health problem, people are more likely to try to avoid you. We must get over the stigma, we must ensure that we are providing the services for people with mental health issues.”

Mental health issues do indeed fall below the radar screen of many health authorities and not just in the UK. Statistically one in four of us will suffer from temporary or permanent mental health problems at some time in our lives. Even if we are spared this misfortune, it is likely that we will experience the tragedy of mental health problems as they afflict a member of our family or a person dear to us.

But the British Prime Minister’s concern is not just about the lack of importance that our health system gives to mental health issues in our society. She promised that her domestic policy agenda was about helping everyone in the country overcome the “burning injustices” they face.

It  is  a sobering reality that while many are becoming richer thanks to improved education that opens more doors through well-paid employment, others are falling behind either because they failed to make the mark in educational achievement or because of a myriad health and social problems that are a stumbling block to social mobility.

An important statement that May made is that “The Shared Society doesn’t just value individual rights but focuses on responsibilities we have to one another. It respects the bonds we share as people, the bonds of family, community, citizenship”.

One of the main weaknesses of the welfare state was that it created a culture of dependence.

The promise of public services that would take care of most social needs of ordinary people from the cradle to the grave created a mind-set of entitlement in many.

Most expected that the granny state would take care of their medical needs with no cost to them, provide them with care facilities in their old age, pay them while being unemployed sufficiently well to kill any incentive to seek work, and provide them with social housing if and when they could not provide a roof over their heads.

The now dysfunctional British Labour Party promptly criticised this new concept as no more than cynical propaganda. Labour’s national campaign coordinator Jon Trickett said: “With the NHS in crisis, we need a plan to fix it and give it the funding it needs – but a complacent Theresa May wouldn’t even recognise there’s an issue.”

Free health and education is a basic principle for a fair society. But these will just be warm words unless they are backed by a steely political determination to underpin these public services with viable financial backing.

johncassarwhite@yahoo.com

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