Society daily 23.05.11

Sign up to Society daily email briefing Today's top SocietyGuardian stories • Coalition must resolve divisions over NHS, says King's Fund • Cameron to relaunch 'big society' project • Ed Miliband warns of struggle for David Cameron's 'jilted generation' • Harriet Harman: A word on rape, Ken Clarke • Cut red meat intake and don't eat ham, say cancer researchers • Anthony Watt's adoption diary: Letting them act their age • Study: Cuts preventing refugees integrating • Can anyone rescue the coastguard? All today's SocietyGuardian stories Other news • Many councils could have their adult care budgets ruled illegal on the back of a high court judgment, the president of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services has told Community Care. Peter Hay said the ruling that concluded that his council - Birmingham - had acted unlawfully through its decision to raise eligibility thresholds from substantial to critical had "set a very high standard" for local authority budget setting. • Britain faces one of the largest bills for elderly care of any leading industrialised nation, with rising costs threatening to undermine the bonds between parents and their children, the Telegraph reports. It says OECD research to be presented this week suggests that a combination of low birth rates and rising life expectancy will force the UK to spend an extra £80bn each year on pensions, long-term care and the health service by 2050. • The government will today be accused of attacking workers through its public spending cuts as union activists debate calls for a general strike , according to the Independent. It says delegates at the Communication Workers Union's annual conference will call on the TUC to organise a 24-hour general strike, saying it will take industrial action on the scale recently seen in Greece and France to make the government change its policies. • The average monthly rent in London is poised to break through the £1,000 mark for the first time , reports the Evening Standard. Rents have soared again this year, as first-time buyers locked out of the mortgage market have been joined by increasing numbers of foreign corporate tenants, all scrambling to secure flats and houses. Agents say rents are likely to continue to rise for the rest of the year because of an acute shortage of properties and the surge in the number of people looking. On my radar ... • Andrew Lansley , who this afternoon will be answering your questions on NHS reforms on our NHS live blog . Post questions now. The Mirror reports on a "stage managed" listening exercise event in Manchester, where the health secretary apparently told hospital staff he cared about their concerns, but he would only answer questions from a hand-picked crowd. Meanwhile, the UK Uncut blog has posted this great piece, in which one of its activists recounts their 95-year-old nan's recollections of life before and after the birth of the health service : "I haven't got any fault to find with the NHS. It's looked after me. Now I have 5 tablets every morning, and the other day I was thinking, 'well, fancy that. There was a time when you couldn't have a tablet, and here I am having five for free.' It's a jolly good thing. I've had everything from the NHS – things to walk with, things to help me go to the toilet, things to help me see. I wouldn't want to go back to the days of struggling. David Cameron says he loves the NHS, but the question is: does he mean it? I think he loves it because he knows he can make money out of it. There would be uproar if the government tried to get rid of it. Everybody knows it's a good thing. Even David Cameron talked about how much the NHS helped his son. Well, that's the good thing about it. It's for everybody, rich or poor. It's even more important now there are no jobs about. Plenty of poor people can barely afford aspirin, but David Cameron probably doesn't know the price of a bottle of cough mixture. He doesn't have to worry about things, but he should care about those that do – people who can't rub to ha'pennies to a penny." • The big society - take four. As the prime minister relaunches, again, his big policy idea, the Mirror reports the apparent inspiration is ... Jesus (I think the picture desk have done some particularly good work on this story). Meanwhile, Julian Dobson's Living with Rats blog makes the observation: "... whether you're a humble volunteer or a not-so-humble philanthropist, the same rule applies: you tend to give your time and your money to causes you support, not causes other people would like you to support." Dobson adds: "we need a different vision of society that's generated by, owned by and accountable to the people who create it, and is supported by the national and local state to ensure it encompasses the most vulnerable. It needs to be built bit by bit from the ground up, and linked and networked as it grows. It will be a continuation of the society that has been growing and maturing, overcoming setbacks and whims of policy, for decades and centuries. Where then are the opportunities? I think there are some. For all the debate about the pros and cons of different approaches to community organising, it's positive that there will be people working within communities to do the important work of listening and helping people articulate their concerns (and don't forget there are also many thousands of community development workers who have a similar role and who need to be supported and resourced, not sacrificed by local councils as an easy cut). It's vital that the community organisers don't make the mistake of some of the big society acolytes, and network only among themselves and the great and the good. They need to have the widest possible range of links and contacts to make the most of their limited resources." Alastair Campbell blogs that Cameron's vision is still no clearer despite the relaunches: "The problem with his Big Society is that it was a tactical ploy to aid the so-called detoxification of the Tory brand, rather than a thought through strategy. Maggie said no such thing as Society. Dave says yes there is, and it's Big, but it is not the same thing as the State. But in survey upon survey, citizens of the Big Society make clear their view that it is in effect a cover for cuts. As the cuts begin to bite in earnest, and as the charitable and voluntary sector struggle to pick up the pieces, that view will harden. Labour had active policies to strengten communities. Cameron's Year Zero government has put an end to many of them, and put a slogan in their place. Today's is his fourth big speech aimed at giving life to the one political concept for which he has managed to build awareness if not comprehension. But it is destined to fail again without clear signs of how policy can make a difference. Cabinet ministers volunteering for a day a year doesn't do it." And Toby Blume links the big society relaunch with new powers to give local people control over public services , local development and a greater say over buildings and land in their communities: "The greatest concern I have about the introduction of the community rights, is also my biggest fear about the whole Big Society agenda….that government seems to have very little concern about how they are taken up by different groups. Despite Big Society's strong language on 'placing power in the hands of those who lack it', there is little evidence to suggest that government wishes to actually do anything about this." • This new report from the Resolution Foundation and Gingerbread, The Hours Trap (pdf), on the potential impact of new arrangements for childcare support , being implemented from 2013. It says the changes may leave some low-to-middle income parents losing over 94p in the pound as they increase their working hours, damaging work incentives and living standards both for both dual-earner households and for single parents. A key finding is that a single mother on the minimum wage would be just £7.50 better off if she decided to work two full days per week, rather than one. "Our hope is that the government can find an alternative way of incorporating childcare within the Universal Credit, which doesn't undermine its original and admirable objective of making work pay," says the foundation's chief executive, Gavin Kelly. • Rory Bremner , who tonight presents ADHD and Me on Radio 4 . This post on the Same Difference blogs explains the background to the programme • The Way to Work , a new report from the Young Foundation, which has found that young people don't feel they are prepared to face the realities of the modern economy. Based on a survey of 12 to 25-year-olds, the report found almost half of young people think they have a worse chance to succeed professionally than their parents, and also argues that the education system lacks the flexibility to respond to the diverse needs of today's young people. • Mental health awareness week , which starts today. The main focus is on the links between sleep and mental health , see also the Twitter hashtag #mhuk • This really lovely post on Professor Whitestick's blog in which the blind author details a visit to St Albans , including some outstanding customer service at the town's museum. • It's completely off topic, I know, but the first press release I received this morning was about the specialist shoe made for Lucky the limping penguin . And there's even a YouTube clip . Absolutely charming. On the Guardian Professional Networks • Live Q&A from noon: How can housing associations help tackle unemployment ? • Healthcare professionals and managers often seem to treat patients and their representative groups with contempt , says Patient from Hell Dick Vinegar • Video blogging is cheap, easy to use and helps you produce videos that appeal to donors and corporate partners , says Jane Whitham, media and communications manager for BCTV In case you missed them ... SocietyGuardian weekend highlights • When Reggie met Kathleen: a great feature about the power of restorative justice • Women and the coalition: a special report on how the government is letting down women • Gavin Kelly of the Resolution Foundation on why the 'squeezed middle' is here to stay All Sunday's SocietyGuardian news and comment All Saturday's SocietyGuardian news and comment SocietyGuardian blogs Patrick Butler's cuts blog Joe Public Sarah Boseley's global health blog SocietyGuardian on social media Follow SocietyGuardian on Twitter Follow Patrick Butler on Twitter Follow Clare Horton on Twitter SocietyGuardian's Facebook page SocietyGuardian links SocietyGuardian.co.uk Guardian cutswatch - tell us about the cuts in your area Public Leaders - the Guardian's website for senior managers of public services The Guardian's public and voluntary sector careers page Hundreds of public and voluntary sector jobs SocietyGuardian acting editor: Anna Bawden Email the SocietyGuardian editor: [email protected] SocietyGuardian.co.uk editor: Clare Horton Email the SocietyGuardian.co.uk editor: [email protected] Interested in education policy and news too? Sign up for the daily Cribsheet round-up