THE TORIES, arguing that their ple of working age. allegedly booming 1990s Britain can no longer afford the welfare provision established during the austerity and rationing of the postwar period, point to demographic changes. The proportion of elderly in the population is certainly on the increase: the lack of a major world war for 50 years has helped create this new phenomenon.
riore pensioners, and an increased life expectancy for each elderty person, not only serve to push up the pension bill, but also bring additional pressures—on health care and social serv. Ices. The averare cost of NHS care for the growing number of over 85s is ten times higher than the average for peoOf course the problem has again been worsened by years of systematic under-investment in the kind of services required by the frail elderly, and by Tory cuts in the value of pensions which have in turn undermined the health of many pensioners: the genera. tion who fought at Dunkirk and paid all their lives into National Insurance for the welfare state now make up the bulk of those living in poverty in Major's Bricain.
But those pundits and analysts who cite the "grey timebomb" as the reason for scrapping key elements of the wel fare state seem to forget that the last S0 years have also seen huge advances In the productivity of labour.
New technology means that fewer workers today could, in an advanced economy, quite reasonably sustain a larger than previous number of pensioners and other dependents: the problem is that they also have to sustain » parasitic capitalist class creaming off the lion's share of wealth as private profit, and-perhaps even more im portant-shackling the productive forces to their own narrow requireWe should not forget the other demographic pressure, which is now making itself felt in our schools. After several years of declining birth rate in the 1970s and 1980s, a new generation of baby boomers are arriving and need primary schools. Soon these increased numbers will need secondary schools and colleges, too.
Socialist Outlook 99 • March 16, 1996. TIED AS they are to the same Maasary low-tax slogans as the Tories, Tony Blair's Labour has little alternative it can offer to the Tory war on the welfare state.
Indeed Labour's own Borrie Comof a graduate tax and compulsory second pension payments, while right wingers led by Frank Field have been challenging some of the most basic eleBlair & co's total capitulation to unable coerently to confront the market-style reforms in the NHS and education, with sucessive policy pronouncements on such issues as opt-out schools, selection in education. NHS Trusts, fundholding GPs and fused.
The party not only has no socialist policy, but on many issues it appears to have no policy at all.
The timidity of Labour's pro. gramme. coupled with the scale on privatisation and dismantling of services, makes sl cven less likely thal a Labour government would even attempt to restore many of the services lost or hived off in the past 17 years.
Activists fighting inside the labour state in any or all of its aspects must not only grasp the scale of the Tory attack. but also the scale of the policy battle to be waged if Labour is not to continue along the same lines as Major.
Campaigning on a number of fronts has demonstrated clear evidence of the continuing public support for the concept and practice of welfare state provision.
Though conceded by the ruling class as a micas to pucity working class resistance in the post-war period, it rep. resents an important, if limited step towards social provision for those in most need, linked to the concept of grants cut another 9% next year, and ate tax', effectively ending any noSocialists reach out to the best campoign and trode union octivists and develop the fight collectively funding key services free of charge at point of use, through prorosive casais These principles are now being eroded to be replaced by the naked logic of the market-driving the more prosperous layers of the middle classes o conto e cos nao oroson fits have been slashed in value since 1979 and are again under attack:
* Sickness and invalidity benefits LANISLA for pensions, neal care, and cyca cou cation.
The reality is that with ever fewer people employed in permanent full ame joos, ano the occincin #ving standards now taking its toll of employed workers as well as the poorest families on state benefits, only a small meaner Job Seckers Allowance, de. signed to save £2.2 billion by cutting off benefits to 90,000 people and forcing 150,000 onto lower, means. minority could afford to pay privately for the services traditionally identified with the weware state: cven those with private medical insurance require NHS A&E cover.
Socialists must raise these issues more openly and forcefully inside the unions and the Labour Party, raising apain die octana for sicopty progic tion of key privatised services. industries and utilities to guarantee defence and improvement of the welfare state.
The fight for democratisation of the quangos which run the NHS, and 4ch0ac00000003800 private pension funds must be raised. along with the scrapping of ludicrously wasteful and bureaucratic market systems in the NHS, voucher schemes for Hutschics, cie The fightback for the welfare state tor the balles to come unocr a biatr govermeot. We must not allow defeatism to set back the struggle.
Even the apparently invincible To. their proposals, especially the demise oi the proloundsy regressive Poll ax: and the notable victory notched up by pensioners fighting VAT on fuel.
Workers who see the Tories ousted and Blair elected will expect some of their long-standing demands to be met: and when they are not, they will be more determined to fight for their Socialists reach out to the best campaisa and trade union activists and de. velop the fight as a root and branch challenge to Blair's corporatist charlatanry about stakeholding. ever larger numbers to take out additional, private pensions - funnelling hillions into the coffers of insurance companies and finance houses: but