Across the country care homes and facilities for our elderly are being closed. With an increasingly ageing population, this is yet another example of how the human rights of our elderly are being eroded in this country today. 

Far from being treated with respect and dignity by the powers that be, our elderly and most vulnerable are almost regarded as a burden, with some herded from care home to care home as one by one they are closed down. Even within some of the care homes and sheltered accommodation schemes, resident wardens are being scrapped, thus further increasing the risk to the most vulnerable. This is nothing less than governmental neglect by the political elite who seem to think a duck house or a clean moat within their grounds is more important than a care home. 

We constantly hear the words ‘care in the community’, and are led to believe there is no reduction in the level of service when this is implemented. We are even told in some circumstances that ‘care in the community is better’. In reality ‘care in the community’ does not exist. How can evicting someone from a secure, safe and friendly environment in which they planned to spend the final years, into what is increasingly becoming a hostile, uncaring environment be better? How can replacing wardens which live on the premises with ones that live miles away not have a detrimental effect on the level of care? It’s impossible for this to be better for the majority of our elderly and vulnerable, whose wishes are not even taken into consideration. The only people it is better for are those trying to save money on services, who no doubt make these decisions whilst sitting in plush furnished offices. 

In the end what it boils down to is cost. For the governments of today feel it is better to fight to free the people of Baghdad and Kabul than to give our old folk the security and peace of mind they deserve in their final years. Unfortunately, with the proposed cuts the Con-Dem coalition plans to implement things are going to get a lot worse.  This will mean many of those that paid high taxes during the 1950’s. 60’s and 70’s will face even further hardship and governmental neglect.

The English Radical Alliance plan to oppose such cutbacks and campaign for the human rights our elderly and most vulnerable thoroughly deserve. Human rights which are currently being ignored.
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