Twelve Policy Proposals for Human Politics

Source

Received from Peter Challen, based on ‘Human Politics: Human Value’ from Martin Whitlock. Dedicated to UK context, but could be applied elsewhere.

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1. COLLABORATIVE POLITICS

Politics in Britain has become a shouting match, in which no one is listening.

Parties attack one another constantly and working together is considered a weakness. Individuals, however, collaborate naturally; it is what they do best. We need a politics that listens to and engages the individual voices of men and women across society, and works hard to find solutions that benefit them all.

2. LOCALISED POWER

I want my local community to have the power to make real choices about the things that affect us.

Local democracy has been destroyed in the last 30 years. Parish and Town Councils are powerless, and central government now dictates almost everything that county, district and unitary authorities must do, including how they set their budgets. The time has come to return this power, to build strong regional and local communities in which people can contribute directly to decisions that affect them and work together to see those decisions put into effect.

3. A HOME FOR EVERYONE

I want a home that is affordable, and I want my children to be able to afford homes, too.

The British housing market is broken, working to create profits rather than affordable places to live. Planning permission is a jackpot handed over by society to a landowner or speculator. This needs to change, urgently. When a community grants planning permission, the increase in value should belong to the community, which should use it to ensure that all new houses are affordable, and that they stay affordable.

4. WORTHWHILE WORK

I want my work to be valued for the well-being that it produces, rather than the money it makes.

In Britain, the highest salaries generally go to the least productive – the people who make money out of money. Because GDP measures "making money" rather than the real wealth that brings wellbeing, governments incentivise it over truly productive work. These incentives need to change in favour of real creativity and innovation, so that people who work hard to produce real wealth are rewarded with the full value of their work.

5. BUSINESS SERVING SOCIETY

I want the banks and big companies I deal with to put people first.

The government gives big advantages to commercial companies, such as limited liability, preferential laws and low rates of tax. They use these privileges for the benefit of so-called "investors" at the expense of everyone else. This needs to change: banks, energy providers, insurance firms, supermarkets and other large companies must earn their privileges by putting the public good before the interests of the City and financial institutions.

6. TRADE FAIRLY

I want the money I spend to go to the producer, not a middleman.

Traders buy things for as little as possible and sell them for as much as they can. GDP measures the traders' profits as a gain to the system, even though the producer and the consumer both lose out, since they receive less and pay more than the goods are worth. This needs to change, bringing producer and consumer closer together so that trading creates real value for them both.

7. REAL EDUCATION

I want my children to learn in ways that bring out their full potential, not just to pass exams.

In Britain, education has gone testing-mad, continually measuring pupils and schools against narrow "academic" targets rather than the well-being of the individual child. This must change, so that the capacities that define and advance our humanity – creativity, originality of thought, emotional intelligence, social skills, problem-solving, physical prowess, manual dexterity and making skills – are placed at the centre of all the work that schools do.

8. NO ONE LEFT BEHIND

We are becoming a society where no one is allowed to be needy. Old people are neglected and the parents of young children are forced to return to work as quickly as possible. Government officers tr., to push people off benefits, or force asylum-seekers back to the countries from which they fled. All this must change, so that human compassion and caring can return to their rightful places, upholding the dignity of every person and ensuring that nobody gets abandoned, marginalised or left behind.

9. REVERENCE FOR NATURE

I want to protect the environment, so that future generations may thrive.

For centuries we have taken for granted the capacity of the natural world to provide human needs and absorb the impact of human activity. That capacity is now in question: life on planet Earth has seen many extinctions, and currently more species are becoming extinct than ever before. Humans could be among them: human activity is threatening the natural balance upon which human life on earth depends, and big changes in this activity are needed if our children, grand-children and future generations are to survive and prosper in the decades and centuries ahead.

10. FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY

I want to be free to take responsibility for my own choices and actions.

Government has imposed so many rules, regulations and tick-boxes that we are losing the freedom to take responsibility for ourselves. Risk-taking is no longer allowed; when things goes wrong, blame has to be apportioned, and no one is allowed to be forgiven for honest mistakes. This needs to change, so that people are free to make decisions about their own well-being based on their individual and shared interests.

11. WHERE WOMEN ARE TRULY EQUAL

I want to live in a balanced society, where women and men are truly equal.

More than half the people on earth are women, but their influence in politics, public administration and the, world of work is much less than that of men. This imbalance is directly connected to the deeper imbalances in society that prevent it functioning effectively for the well-being of all. This needs to change, with policies that enable women to play a truly equal role and ensure that society does not miss out on the deep well of wisdom and talent that women offer.

12. WHAT'S MISSING?

www.2015constitutionalists.uk

A principled and pragmatic process being test tried for May 2105 What other key policy principles should be included? These are some of the major political challenges that Britain is facing, but not all the important issues are listed. The Reimagine vision is for a fundamental transformation of the democratic process, to enable a better future. http://reimagine.org.uk/policy-principles/