Although the Labour Party is in opposition to the Tory-led Coalition in county hall these days, it looks like we’re making steady progress in the battle to win over hearts and minds.
As regular readers of these pages will know I’m a member of the county council’s corporate overview and scrutiny management board which oversees the running of the council’s scrutiny function and coordinates the work of the five individual thematic scrutiny committees. There are often interesting debates in board meetings, but none as surprising as one that took place last week.
I attended the latest meeting of the board, held last Friday morning in county hall, and took an active part in the most surreal debate in recent years. Members of the board were discussing the council’s latest policy approach to poverty, which as everyone knows has engulfed many of our communities over the past few months and years as the cost of living crisis, the impact of ongoing government cuts and soaring inflation have diminished household budgets across County Durham and the country as a whole.
As part of the discussions on Friday morning one of the Tory councillors raised the subject of free school meals and expressed concern at how many families and children were failing to take advantage of the free school meals on offer. Although this was down to a number of contributory factors the Tory councillor felt that there was ‘enough out there for everyone, so the issue must now be to make sure it goes where it’s needed most’.
I replied by agreeing with that analysis (perhaps the first time I’ve ever concurred with a Tory councillor), and I said I agreed because what she was proposing was actually redistribution - a central tenet of socialism! Whether we’re talking about free school meals or wealth in general the problem is always rooted in the unfair distribution of that commodity to the detriment of those who need it most. I argued that if we as a council truly wanted to ensure that all school children received free school meals we should press the government to extend the eligibility for free school meals to all children on the school roll. This would have a number of positive impacts; most importantly it would ensure that all children received at least one hot meal a day, but it would also ensure the school receives additional funding through the pupil premium formula which distributes funding to schools based on the number of children on free school meals. In addition, it would eliminate the stigma attached to free school meals - one of the main reasons for the low take-up figures - and it would also boost household disposable income which is particularly low in County Durham. When families have more to spend it also revives the local economy, creates jobs and returns more revenue to the exchequer in the form of income tax and VAT receipts - and all because of one simple adjustment to the qualification criteria for free school meals.
In conclusion, I urged members of the management board to write to the government to let them know about the dreadful deal County Durham receives as a direct result of political choices made in Westminster. It’s notable that my suggestion was agreed unanimously by all board members present - including Tories and Lib Dems!
It just goes to show that when individuals actually stop to consider the reasoning behind the issues they’re talking about it can often reveal a deeper meaning - in this case a Tory councillor who frequently berates the Labour Party for being ‘far left’ has unwittingly emerged as one of its unexpected champions - and in doing so confirmed that there’s nothing at all ‘far left’ about wanting a fair deal for those most in need.
So as the slogans on our Blackhall DMA banner say, let’s put ‘need before greed’.
Or let’s stand up ‘for the many, not the few’ as they say these days in the most unexpected circles!