A lot has happened in the world of politics since 7 May. With the general election campaign seeming like a distant memory and MPs now sworn in, this week Westminster finally gets back to business.
Since polling day, the Charities Aid Foundation has continued making the case that charities should be seen as important allies of government and central to its plans. Wednesday’s Queen’s speech will be the first true test of whether this government will put a strong civil society at the heart of its agenda.
The Conservative party manifesto set out a number of pledges aimed at reinvigorating David Cameron’s concept of the ‘big society’. This is still an area of huge unfulfilled potential, and we will all be hoping to see some signs of that potential being unleashed on Wednesday.
Our survey of charities last month found that voluntary organisations wanted the post-election government to prioritise the promotion of volunteering and social action. The Queen’s speech is the first chance for Cameron’s government to meet this aspiration, beginning by delivering on the Conservative manifesto pledge to give millions of people paid time off work to volunteer.
Fewer than one in 10 people currently gets paid leave to do voluntary work. Many, including a lot of our younger people, are not given sufficient information about the wealth of opportunities available to them and the contribution that they can make.
Companies of all types and sizes should be supported to get their staff to give time to good causes. This is a policy which can make a real difference to our country and reap benefits for individuals and businesses which take part. In fact, an overlooked aspect of this policy is the substantial benefit to businesses that embed a culture of volunteering among staff, which leads to increased productivity, enthusiasm and greater retention of employees.
Dramatically expanding our culture of volunteering across the UK could be one of the great legacies of this Queen’s speech.
One piece of legislation which has been widely talked about in advance is the proposed counter terrorism bill, which could have implications for the work charities do in countries afflicted by war and terrorism.
Charities carrying out lifesaving work in fragile and unstable parts of the world are already vulnerable to being frozen out of the financial system. New counter-terrorism laws will need careful consideration to ensure they do not further restrict relief efforts in places like Syria.
Ahead of the general election there was a strong feeling that charities were not sufficiently on the political agenda.
Across all areas of legislation, we want to see government working in partnership with charities, acknowledging and enhancing the important role that voluntary organisations play across all parts of public life. We would also like to see action from government to promote the social economy by supporting social enterprises, mutuals and co-operatives.
A strong charity sector benefits us all. Let’s hope this week’s Queen’s speech recognises that, and seeks to strengthen it further.
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