Social Democracy.

Despite getting a lot of negative media attention of late, the welfare state is a vital institution which benefits us all, whether you are rich or poor.
First of all, let’s establish where our taxes go. They go to our National Health Service, they go abroad, they go into our education and a lot more. They are also shared amongst our citizens, in the form of benefits. This sometimes causes controversy, the main issue being that people claim benefits when they don’t really need it. A common example is claiming unemployment benefits and then making little or no effort to find work. Benefit fraud is a crime and should be dealt with severely. Anybody found to be taking advantage of welfare should have their benefits stopped.
Despite the extra media attention, however, these people still remain a minority. There are plenty of honest people on benefits who genuinely need the extra money. I see myself as a good example. My parents are in debt and I am due to start University in September. I do not wish to cause them extra stress by having them pay for it, but I am also finding it increasingly difficult to get a job in the current economic climate. For that reason, I receive Job Seekers Allowance and have applied for a student loan, both of which are provided by you, the tax payer, via the government. Not too long ago, university was only available to the very rich. Now everyone has the opportunity to realise their true potential.
Then of course there is the single mother, who wants to work to provide for her children so that they can get a good start in life. You, the tax payer, can provide round the clock childcare. Your money also goes to early learning programmes such as sure start. It has been statistically proven that children who learn from an early age perform better academically in later life, are likely to go into higher education and have a good career, and less likely to turn to crime than those who do not receive pre-schooling.
A common argument against social democracy is that people will be dependent on the welfare state, but this is not what it’s there for. Those who completely rely on benefits should have them taken off them. I will not be claiming benefits for the rest of my life. When I graduate from university, I will hopefully have a career with a good salary. The single mother will not need your money forever. Once her children are old enough, they will no longer need a babysitter. Many primary and secondary schools have started to run after school clubs for children with working parents. This of course would not be possible without your money.
Another argument is the ever popular “it’s our money, we earned it, if they don’t want to earn as much as us then that’s their problem etc.” It is your money, but did you know that 54% of people below the poverty line do work? They are providing for the nation but are receiving little in return. This is why the minimum wage needs to be raised to a decent amount which people can live on. That and income support are once again provided by you, the tax payer, and it won’t be permanent because the idea is to break the cycle: Poor parents raising poor children, who will grow up to be poor parents.
An ideal Britain is a Britain that is poverty free. And it is perfectly possible. Norway successfully accomplished the abolition of poverty in 2003.It has the second highest GDP per-capita and the third highest GDP (PPP) per capita in the world. It maintained first place in the world in the UNDP Human Development index for six consecutive years (2001-2006) and despite being beaten by Iceland in 2007, it still remains in second place. Following the ongoing financial crisis, its currency has been deemed one of the most solid currencies in the world. It maintains a Scandinavian welfare model with universal healthcare, free higher education and comprehensive social security system, and, in 2007 was rated most peaceful country in the world by Global Peace Index.
If we ended poverty in the UK, everyone will benefit. Statistics prove that the majority of crime in this country is committed by people living below or on the poverty line. Better education will ensure that more of tomorrow’s workers are highly qualified, which means more doctors, more lawyers, more teachers and more jobs overall. Jobs that require low qualified workers will pay a decent wage. Overall, people will be healthier and crime will reduce dramatically, which means that we will not need to spend as much money on the NHS or on our prisons.
But none of this will be achieved without social democracy. The welfare state, the NHS and state education are all what make our country a social democracy, and without these institutions, we would be much worse off. Although we are constantly hearing negative things about the NHS, the problem is not the NHS itself, but the way it is handled. If the government sorted out the problem instead of throwing money at it (by providing more doctors, more beds and cleaner hospitals) then I have no doubt that it could be a world class system.
This won’t happen overnight. But it can happen. And if it doesn’t happen then we will remain in this situation where our money is being abused. The government needs to stop spending our taxes on things like a third runway and expenses that are not needed, and instead spend it on improved state education, childcare and higher wages for workers to provide for their family. If that can be achieved then I see a future where people will no longer have to claim benefits and our taxes are used for better things. It is not solely socialism or capitalism, it is Social Democracy: A combination of the two. If we bring these two ideologies together, it can work for all of us.