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From The Socialist newspaper, 17 October 2018
Devon foster carers fight 30% cut in allowances
Foster carers and supporters protest outside a Devon Council meeting, photo by Sean Brogan (Click to enlarge)
Sean Brogan, former foster carer and Exeter Socialist Party
If austerity is over, no-one told the Tory councillors of Devon County Council. Foster carers are to have their allowances cut by 30%. Already they have no rights and live a precarious existence with no guarantee of income. Many are single parents having to meet rent and mortgage commitments.
The reductions will be made after so-called 'consultations'. This practice is sham democracy. The council says the policy will be "fairer and more equitable", attracting more foster carers.
The underlying truth is that the Tories have an agenda of moving all services to private provision. Recently one such private fostering company was sold for £100 million! Fostering children is now about profit for some.
Devon foster carers are fighting back - many have joined the Foster Care Workers Union which is a branch of the IWGB union.
At a recent council meeting, councillors were subject to a barrage of noise and speeches - "no ifs, no buts, no foster care cuts!" - as Henry Lopez, IWGB president travelled from London along with Sandra Anderson, organiser of the Foster Carer's Union to give no-nonsense speeches about the callous way foster carers are being treated.
Foster carers may be seen as a soft target but not when they are organised. Exeter Trade Union Council brought support along with several branches of Unite Community and Exeter Socialist Party.
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The coronavirus crisis has laid bare the class character of society in numerous ways. It is making clear to many that it is the working class that keeps society running, not the CEOs of major corporations.
The results of austerity have been graphically demonstrated as public services strain to cope with the crisis.
The government has now ripped up its 'austerity' mantra and turned to policies that not long ago were denounced as socialist. But after the corona crisis, it will try to make the working class pay for it, by trying to claw back what has been given.
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In The Socialist 17 October 2018:
What we think
Tories' Brexit bust-up - general election now
News
Universal credit = universal misery
New anti-poll tax type revolt needed today
Toxic fracking gets the go-ahead while protesters jailed
No to fat-cat top judges' £59k pay hike - fight for decent pay for criminal justice workers
Tory and Trump hypocrisy over murder of Saudi Arabian journalist
Mental health
Fully fund mental health services now
Workplace news
PCS union: nominate Chris Baugh as Left Unity candidate for assistant general secretary
Striking Brum home carers reject 'final' pay cut offer
South Western rail workers launch five-day safety strike to save guards
Uber drivers strike against unfair 'deactivation' and low pay
Bolton hospital workers strike
Grimethorpe dinner ladies stage all-out strike against redundancy
Cable makers' pay strike bites as production falls 33%
Newham finance staff fight pay and grading insult
International socialist news and analysis
Libres y Combativas: striking for women's rights in the Spanish state
Engels
The renewed relevance of Engels' classic Socialism: Utopian and Scientific
Socialist Party reports and campaigns
Socialism - the podcast offering Marxist analysis for the movement against capitalism
'Corbyn-council' faces a choice: Implement or fight the cuts
Devon foster carers fight 30% cut in allowances
Opinion
Peterloo film exposes bloody nature of capitalism
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