The Tories new elderly care proposal is a shameless vote-winning wheeze, a cunning way to insure the escalating bill for residential care, or another borrowing from David Cameron’s surprising choice of model state -- the socialist Nirvana that is Sweden.
Senior Conservatives met Goran Persson in London a few weeks ago, keen to know how he halved Sweden’s national debt during his decade as leader of the Social Democrats. This very un-Roy Jenkins party of the left has had almost unbroken control of Sweden since the 1930s when it established the Folkhemmet or Home of the People – universal provision of excellent services used by everyone from the rich to the poor – instead of the modernised Poor House that became the welfare state in half-hearted Britain. The Swedes achieved a concordat between unions and industrialists in 1938 which transformed their economic performance and experience of industrial relations. No “us v them” or “Thatcher v Scargill”. Swedish trade unionists negotiated with bosses and got recognition, high wages and their hands on the levers of power. In return Swedish industry has been virtually strike-free. The result is a capitalist society with the smallest gap between average and executive wages in the world and 50% tax rates for the rich, who don’t leave or complain (audibly) because ultra-high wages are considered un-lagom. Lagom means “in balance”, or “just right” and it’s the Swedes most important and un-British quality. Too much of anything is deemed as bad as too little. Walking the streets of Lund, Angelholm, Malmo, Stockholm and Uppsala last week, the lean, healthy citizenry were visual testimony to lagom’s enduring appeal.
This is the nation whose policies, if not underlying outlook, David Cameron is currently borrowing wholesale. Never mind that Persson’s party was beaten at the polls in 2006 by a party called the New Moderates. Just like New Labour, this was a cloning not a replacement of the previous government. The New Moderates leader announced, “Every promise the Social Democrats make on social welfare we will agree to and improve.”
Ringing any bells?
The New Moderates have introduced Free Schools – state-funded specialised alternatives to state schools which are free for parents. Free Schools are now British Conservative Party policy.
My guess is that every other pronouncement made by the Tory high command at their conference in Manchester this week, will reflect this unlikely meeting of minds.
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How did Persson halve national debt? His lesson for the Tories is uncompromising -- voters must be told exactly how debt will be reduced in a detailed election manifesto. Pain shared is pain halved – so no section of society or government should remain immune from spending cuts and the rich should be taxed more (to build confidence and a belief in fairness amongst most taxpayers.)
Already Cameron is talking pidgin Perssonist, accepting the need for a “temporary” 50% tax band, and surprising commentators this weekend with plans for a one-off upfront payment to stop elderly people selling their homes to finance residential care. Cameron’s ‘home protection plan’ will guarantee over-65s permanent residential care in return for a one of fee of about £8,000. At present, 45 thousand people with assets worth more than £23,000, pay annual fees of around £26,000 for residential care. It’s hard to see how pensioners who are house rich but cash poor could easily obtain £8000, though the finance industry will doubtless find a way. It’s also doubtful that the £700million thus raised would be enough. But as Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley will tell Conservatives today (check) it’s a start. “In 12 years, Labour have failed to offer older people any hope of a way out of the forced home sales crisis.”
He has a point.
So can the Tories deliver a Swedish style Folkhemmet in Britain? A competitive socialism? A fair capitalism? Not a chance. Sweden’s achievements arise from values developed over decades which instil trust, efficiency and the capacity to organise into every Swede. Now our X Factor society wants to acquire that can-do outlook overnight.
Cameron’s proposals are already a watered-down version of the originals.
Swedish elderly care is considerably better than ours. There’s a contributions cap of £500 per month, so even the richest 65 year old pays a quarter of the annual fees demanded in Britain – and houses are untouched. Equally, the poorest don’t pay their whole state pension for care. Old people in the home I visited in Angelholm each have a separate, small apartment with a balcony, and bring in their own furniture and ornaments.
I met a member of the Diplomatic Service, whose mother lived in this council-run home for two years – he’s putting his own name on the list.
News that old people in Scotland die from hypothermia absolutely appalled the Swedes I met.
“This is completely unnecessary. Don’t you have district heating?”
No, of course we don’t—though every town in Sweden (and most of Northern Europe) does. When you ask why, there is puzzlement.
Why would you not supply heat and hot water to everyone from a central source. It’s more efficient and with a hundred energy suppliers (including towns the size of Falkirk) prices are kept low. The central boilers have been converted from oil to renewable sources and most now use heat from council-run incinerators that burn the 20% of rubbish that can’t be recycled or turned into bio-gas (in Angelholm biogas powers the council-owned bus fleet). In Britain we gave the elderly individual central heating instead saddling them with sky-high bills, ensuring conversion from fossil-fuels would become an epic task, and missing the opportunity of several lifetimes.
And yet Sweden’s big secret isn’t central state control, it’s local empowerment. No-one earning under £30k pa pays any national taxes at all and regions like Skane, with just one million people, have more tax-varying powers than the Scottish government – albeit no legislative powers.
Localised, integrated and truly equal. This may be David Cameron’s vision but without putting a cap on individual greed, the Swedish quality of life for all will remain a large, choppy ocean away.
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