Duncan Gillies: Hypocrisy infects Govt call for more philanthropy

The British Government is 'arguing for new social attitudes that celebrate giving'. Photo / Thinkstock

Opinion

Britain's Government may have come up with a way to prevent snow bringing the nation to a standstill and all it involves is money machines and eftpos transactions.

Under proposals being discussed to increase the amount British people donate to charity, shoppers will be offered the opportunity give to a good cause every time they buy something. This is because the Government believes that citizens need to be reminded of the "warm glow" that comes from helping others.

It isn't talking about that hot-under-the-collar "glow" that some British MPs felt 18 months ago when it emerged they had confused the system that allows them to claim expenses for a fund to help them build up their property portfolios.

No, the Tory-LibDem Coalition is talking about that Care Bear, snow-melting "glow" that radiates from a Cabinet meeting when, after discussing new ways of cutting benefits, reducing services and increasing university fees, MPs start to discuss their latest donations to their favourite charities.

Driving the proposals is Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude who, with a property portfolio valued by the Daily Telegraph in 2009 at well over £1 million ($2 million), claimed almost £35,000 in two years for mortgage interest payments on a London flat. He lived in the flat while renting out a house he owned outright just a short walk away.

He says by promoting charitable acts the Government is "arguing for new social attitudes that celebrate giving".

"Talking about what we do for good causes is often seen as vulgar. But sharing experiences can inspire others," Maude says.

Because this Government is serious about charity. Under the proposals, anyone making a big donation to charity will get letters from ministers, while anyone who wins the National Lottery and gives part of their newfound fortune to a good cause will have their generosity recognised on television.

I give to charity but I would probably consider increasing the amount I give if I could be guaranteed never to receive any mail from a politician ever again. Make my mailbox a political flyer-free zone during election year and I just might just start up my own soup kitchen.

And what sort of message are you sending out when you suggest putting the names of philanthropic lottery winners on TV?

So Jesus got it wrong when he told his disciples that the poor old widow who quietly put two coins into the temple treasury had made more of a contribution than the rich men who made the sort of donations that would have been worth a big letter of thanks from the local MP. He should have said: "Go out and gamble what little money you have and, when you eventually win, then give to the poor. And under a scheme I've set up with the Romans, Pontius Pilate will acknowledge your generosity in the lead-up to the live coverage of this week's crucifixions."

Don't get me wrong, I think people should be encouraged to give to charity and I believe the new generation of super-rich philanthropists such as Bill Gates do more good than most people can imagine. And I don't have a problem with that work being recognised.

But I do wonder about what sort of society British Prime Minister David Cameron really believes he is building. Just this week, a leading charity figure criticised the spending cuts in an open letter to Cameron, suggesting they could become his Hurricane Katrina moment.

"Forcing an unsustainable pace on a barrage of unco-ordinated cuts that hit the poorest hardest is not an act of God. Why let it be your Katrina?" writes David Robinson, co-founder of the London-based charity Community Links. His letter came as the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development predicted unemployment in Britain this year would hit a 17-year high, rising from 7.9 per cent to 9 per cent, or 2.7 million. That will only increase the demand for the services many charities provide.

Robinson points out, though, that their work is threatened by the spending cuts and urges Cameron to reassess his approach to tackling the nation's massive debt problem.

"I'm not asking you to renege on policy pledges, but give us more time," he writes.

Sadly, it sounds as though the Government is asking the public to help fund the charities it no longer feels able to support.

I imagine the poor who have been hit hardest by the spending cuts will find the call for charitable acts hard to swallow.

WORTHY ASPIRATIONS

It's that time again, when we look back at what we could have done differently over the past 12 months and make resolutions for the new year. Or, we could just make resolutions for others.

Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks: To make sure my generous female friends are always awake and are not the type to kiss and tell.

Vladimir Putin: To wrestle a bear, swim with the sharks and win the Eurovision Song Contest for Russia.

Sarah Palin, former Governor of Alaska, Tea Party cheerleader and moose hunter: To finally get a word introduced into the Oxford Dictionary.

Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda leader: To renovate the cave.

Ricky Ponting, Australia's cricket captain: To become the fourth official in test cricket.