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No, Mr Reees Mogg, what tells us 'our laws are serious', is when they actively consider the people, rather than the parchment they are written on http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/feb/17/vellum-laws-parliament-paper-costs
So we live under a political establishment which will pay for calf skin over local councils? This comes in light of recent news which has drawn
attention to MPs efforts to save the centuries-old practice of printing Britain’s
laws on vellum – usually goat or calf skin – with the cabinet office even
offering to foot the £80,000 additional cost. Tradition rather than transformation seems to be the sad state of much of Britain's politics. The
events seem to confirm this is the case, as David Cameron praised the
preservation of parliament writing laws on vellum – which had been due to end
in April - as playing an ‘important
part’ in the House of Commons and that
it is a tradition which should be upheld ‘wherever possible’ (according to his
official spokesperson). It’s a shame he didn’t have this apparent urgency for
upholding institutions loved by the people; such as the great traditions of
libraries and community centres, which he seems to deem as unimportant enough
to fall under his austerity cuts.
A government which
prioritizes the appearance of its record, over the real lives of people – is
the raw reality. It is still a segregated field, with a different system
enjoyed by the elite than those they claim to represent. They could not bear
the prospect of laws recorded on paper or computers, yet can stomach a series
of strict council cuts.
Whilst the government seems content to go forwards with its austerity
measures (with over £6 billion expected to be cut, considerably affecting local
councils by 2019
)
it still managed to have the time and money to come with agreement with the
cabinet office and pay £80,000 annually for the calf skin. As supported by Cabinet
Office Minster Matthew Hancock, writing laws on vellum is a great ‘tradition’
which needs to be preserved. This comes at the same time as the much more
personal ‘tradition’ of community libraries falls victim to the axe of cuts, traditional
children’s centres scrapped, support centres closed. Here in Manchester, the
council is planning to increase council tax by up to 4%, whilst facing cuts of
up to £13.8m from its budget, for instance
.
I am not saying that the costs are
comparable; obviously there’s a difference between £80,000 and the millions.
But what I am saying is that this is a government with a seriously skewed
perspective – willing to cut the services which mean something to a majority
(i.e. libraries have the capacity to be loved by generations, children centres will
always be needed), whilst preserving pomp and circumstances of a minority.
The material they are
written on should not matter
Even a small amount of money can give community facilities
the boost they need to come alive again; all some libraries were crying out for
was an extent of refurbishment to encourage in a wider audience. People weren’t even given a say over how the
cuts were to be coordinated, as many have since come forward expressing their
willingness to work voluntarily to keep local facilities living, but to no
avail. Vellum is never going to come alive either; instead, it’s sickly
appropriate that it is the product of awful exploitation itself – a dead calf. This
says enough in itself. Whilst some may
argue ‘ah yes, but it is the laws that are written on the vellum which do come
alive/into force’ - and I am not
disputing that - it is not the material
they are written on that should matter. It is the material gain/good they bring
about which should be the priority; and right now, there has been little so far
given to the social situations of Britain.
Some people may shout me down for lacking nostalgia and even
offending history; after all, vellum is capable of keeping records and lasting
for as long as 500 years. It is certainly durable and long-lasting; two terms I
would not use to describe Britain’s ‘law makers’ at the moment. This is a
government feathering its own privileged nest whilst seemingly content to let
those of its people freeze over as ‘arbitrary’. Over the years and again in
recent discussion, there has been apparent ‘outcry’ from MPs against the
introduction of... shock horror... paper, instead of vellum. This ‘outcry’ has
been instrumental to keeping the tradition going; so it would have been nice
for such a level of passionate force to be placed behind complaints to
Cameron’s cuts from inside government. Any respite from austerity measures has seemed centred on the
political nesting ground of Tory-led councils, especially in the South of England,
some which have been given a significant amount of £300 million to help support
them at a time of the spending cuts
;
whilst Northern countries not as closely tied with the current political elite receive
no entitlement whatsoever. Is this a case of old-school network, old-school
values, topped off with vellum?
Furthermore, it’s hard not to get the perception that the
current political elite still have different rules for themselves (again
feathering the nest) than they do for the general public. Vellum, a high-price
product, is a material for the privileged
few – and although it is capable of lasting a long time, yes – modern-day digital
records are capable of preserving data for the long-term too, as well as being
the network across which many people connect now. It would be much more
cost-effective for the government to turn its hand to keeping itself and laws
updated on computers – as well providing them with the capacity to connect more
actively with constituents, which would be very welcome.
Embracing technology
is not a bad thing. Yet recent events have confirmed to me that high politics
still seems to turn its nose up at the ‘modern’ public domain; shunning social
media, denying internet interaction, especially when it came to people’s
argument against the cuts. I am of the view that a variety of media – involving
press, print and digital – can get people involved and interested in current
events, politics. The government crucially needs to use this, especially in
terms of MP’s keeping up-to-date with their constituents, across the board. Vellum
is a medium which will only ever be available to the select few.
The government goes
for calf, whilst the NHS remains a cattle market
This is a government willing to pledge a lump sum to write
on the skin of an animal, whilst funding worries for public services under excessive
strain – such as the NHS – go under-discussed. Where is the cabinet office
clamour over the sheer frequency of hospital bed crises, as well as figures
revealed as part of Mental Health Week; that cuts dating back from 2010 have
resulted in 8% fewer mental health beds and 5,000 fewer nurses for mental
health.
This is a system
where funds still seem to favour ideological aspects rather than actual
incidents. The Guardian has been conducting a month-long investigation into the
NHS, revealing that some trusts have been falling into debt by as much £60
million, and yet the government seems to
give more attention to cow skin than the complication. Hospitals such as
Addenbrooke’s in Cambridge, has been losing an estimated £1.2 million per week
.
Yet overturning what was an attempt to remove
velum and replace it with paper seems like a bigger priority than addressing
the removal of crucial funds from the NHS – where was the cabinet office and MP
‘outcry’ for situations like this?
It’s just another confirmation of cruelty. This is a
political system prepared to deal death in order to keep its ‘traditions’ for
the few alive; the process of writing on vellum won’t be the pleasure of many, I’m
sure. Some may react and argue – well what about history? Vellum has its abilities,
after all, to be incredibly long-lasting and has documented some important
histories over time; think the Magna Carta, the Slavery Abolition Act. I have
studied history myself and value historical records –and the most valuable
records of all are of course those of the people. The current political state
seems to be splitting apart its people rather than creating something worth
recording. Some MPs turn their noses up at the thoughts of laws on paper or a
computer and spend time agonising over that, whilst people’s local facilities
and libraries can’t even afford to keep any such resources. There is a serious
imbalance here.
We’re recording in the wrong way. Right now even, politicians
don’t seem to be putting down the crucial points on how they’ll keep the NHS moving forward, instead they are
quietly letting headcount reductions go on, in order for the NHS to cut staff
and save money; areas are judged in, budgets, savings. They’d rather make the
record look fancy than think about the people themselves; announcing £1 billion
investment for mental health for example
,
which rather than proof governments
greatness, is a long overdue investment
which will largely go on propping-up
currently crumbling systems. Waiting times for talking treatment as long as 20 weeks,
missed referrals, and the rest....
Grandeur with the
goodness scraped away – this government?
It’s easy to feel attracted by big numbers and assumed
greatness, as it seems much of political establishment falls into. Its arguments
for upholding vellum include that it looks impressive and has a life over 500,
and yet here is the irony that we are faced with institutions like the NHS
which in their current state will struggle to reach 100. It’s a sad time when the government would
prefer to pay to write on the back of a dead cow, than to put the equivalent
into any area which requires funds as a public service; healthcare and councils
as just some examples.
Finally, vellum is a vile thing in itself and this is what
my point boils down to. I am against any living creature being used as means to
an end, and vellum is an example of exactly that – the skin of an innocent baby
creature used for no other reason than building up government grandeur. Grandeur
with the goodness scraped away from underneath; which just seems like what this
political situation is summarising. When
will they see the importance of addressing the people rather than keeping up appearances?
When will they get into the people instead of hiding behind a butchered skin?
