Big Society's Big Mouth Powered by v

It’s great to have the opportunity to hear from you. There have been lots of questions already so I will use this first post to address as many as I can.

At its heart, the Big Society is about Government getting out of the way and enabling you to take charge, identify what your neighbourhood needs and empowering you to do something about it. Jamie asks how the Big Society can exist without young people, and the answer is simple: it can’t and it doesn’t. There’s nothing ‘big’ about a society that doesn’t involve young people and incorporates the amazing talent, ideas and creativity that our young people have, which I have already seen for myself through my Department’s work with the Big Society vanguard community in Sutton and through meetings with young people like those who have
been recipients of the Diana Award and young inspectors in Barking & Dagenham. With the Big Society you have the opportunity to innovate and be at the driving seat of positive change.

Many of your questions go straight to the concerns you have over ‘cuts’ to funding.

The last Government left the biggest budget deficit in our peacetime history – with the state forecast to borrow £155 billion a year in 2010-11, or over £400 million being borrowed every single day. The new Government’s savings will help eliminate the deficit by 2014-15. This will help keep interest rates down, restore economic stability and reduce the amount of taxpayers’ money that would otherwise be spent on debt interest. As with a credit card bill, the longer you go without paying, the worse it gets. If a government lives beyond its means, it will mean higher taxes or even deeper spending reductions in the future.

Councils spend about a quarter of all public money so they have to play their part. Every council was expecting, and the majority were planning sensibly, for cuts to their budget.

Certainly councils up and down the country have tough decisions to make on how they prioritise spending but they should treat the voluntary sector and local community groups with the full respect they deserve and resist any temptation to pass on disproportionate cuts and should be looking at ways to cut the waste within before they consider cutting valuable services.

Today, there is even greater need for the diversity, innovation and cost savings that voluntary and community groups can offer in a tougher economic climate, and councils should look for opportunities to strengthen ties with the sector not loosen them. Indeed many councils are actively working to protect voluntary organisations. Reading Council for example has boosted funding to voluntary organisations by more than £220,000 this year to over £7 million and Hackney in London has protected its £2.5m grant funding for voluntary organisations in 2011/12, and has no plans to cut in future years.

We’ve had to take tough decisions to start to put the economy back on a stable footing but at the same time we are undertaking a massive transfer of power from Whitehall to councils and local communities, enabling them to recognise the valuable role of the voluntary sector and that it can for instance provide crucial support to young people.

Whoever you are and whatever you have got to give, we want to make it easier for you. Busting down barriers that prevent you getting involved is high on my priority list. I recently attended the Positive for Youth Summit to discuss these issues and in my Department three young people from the British Youth Council are currently working to remove some of these barriers, as identified young people themselves. They are working side by side with my officials and reporting directly to Ministers.

Young people have an important voice in the Big Society so shout up on this blog! Tell me how you are working in your communities to make them better places to live, the barriers you have faced and what Government can do to help.

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