First thing, a meeting of our Big Society Commission. A dynamic discussion. Presentations from Gareth Davies, who runs the Office of Civil Society, and from Ipsos Mori with public perceptions of BigSoc.
Interesting discussion on whether power should be "given up" by central Government or whether in fact we want to enable third sector and community organisations to "grab it". Whether the Government really understands the importance of dissent and community activism? If you are enabling people to control more, then they will often do it in ways Government deeply disapprove. And traditionally state bodies don't like that. Volunteering isn't just about jam making. It's about protest as well. As the Mori presentation made clear more people get involved locally to protest against something than to give back. There is also the striking fact that volunteering levels are strongly correlated to levels of affluence and deprivation. Low levels in poor areas so encouraging more volunteering will not reach the parts that we need to drench.
A clear view on the opportunities for more cost effective and citizen driven services and for a growing sector. Some debate about Maude's anarchism and trying to get a better handle on what the framework for Big Society is and a better explanation of it. The sector has much to gain from the Big Society approach. But the danger is the project is floundering under the welter of cuts and funding challenges we all face. Yet the sector will grow and become stronger in the long term.
We agreed a programme of evidence gathering and consultation, looking for example about the role business can play (and not just as a patronising CSR project).
I started the day with Big Society and ended it at The Royal Society. Sixteen years ago I was on a four week course with the Duke of Edinburgh Leadership Forum. We were all put into teams of 12 and our small band formed a strong bond that continues today. A bunch of people drawn from the third sector, unions, business, academe and the church. Many of us were young then and last night three of us reflected on the fact that we and The Queen will celebrate our Diamond jubilees in 2012.
We met at The Royal Society as one of our number has risen through the ranks of academe to become Professor Dame Wendy Hall, a Fellow of the Royal Society; one of the worlds most distinguished and eminent bodies. Others have similarly prospered: a Union Deputy General Secretary, a top Director in BP, a soon to be Bishop and the Policy Director of DWP. But the amazing thing about the leadership course we went on was the fact that we formed such a strong network and we meet up still! The power of leadership....
Wednesday, 12 January 2011
Tuesday, 11 January 2011
More banking....
I was in the BBC Millbank studios again last night. Last time it was to be interviewed by the great Robert Peston for his package on Bank bonuses for the News on Thursday. Did you see it? Unfortunately I was put walking the Hound so missed it but was told it was effective (Mother thought I was looking tired!).
This time it was for BBC Wales and an on air live discussion with an economist Professor Gerald Holtham about my call for a tax on bonuses to go to charity. I hope I gave a fair presentation of our case, and at least I had air time to once again highlight the problems that our sector face with a gaping hole on funding opening up.
We have been getting a lot of attention on this issue. Indeed we are apparently being reported in many places, not least the Hindustan Times and Qatar News. I feature in Blogs (one with the charming heading of "pipe down Sir Stephen"!). But more importantly, also The Wall Street Journal and Harvard Business Review. A sympathetic philanthropy journal in the States reports,
"The head of the U.K. Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations Stephen Bubb, is calling for a 50 percent tax on the bonuses that bankers are getting this year. Good for him! In the U.S., after having driven the economy into a devastating recession, banks are raking in record profits, even after they repay some of their TARP subsidies, and they have rewarded their top staff with amazingly lucrative bonuses.
Bubb is soon to be knighted. Perhaps the new title will help Sir Bubb push through his tough, creative proposal that he hopes will generate funding for Prime Minister David Cameron's big society bank.
The U.S. government has jawboned against these types of bonuses and in some cases has gotten top bankers to forego their six-and seven-figure treats. British bankers will get an estimated £7 billion in bonuses this year. Getting them to dedicate half that sum to the big society bank would be a kickstart and a half for the Tory/Liberal government's social program. Which U.S. nonprofits will call on this nation's banking sector to dedicate half of its huge recession surplus to American charities? — Rick Cohen."
Now it is sad that this has also involved a significant number of thoroughly offensive emails from bankers and calls to our office where members of staff have been abused down the phone. We have had to tell staff that their job does not involve having to put up with bankers who think they can behave in such a way. Of course this simply reinforces the view that many have that the banking industry is out of touch and does not understand the justifiable concern that we as taxpayers have about their behaviour when we bailed the banks out. We hear a lot about "bank bashing" but certain members of that profession think nothing of phoning ACEVO to "bash" us over the phone!
But you need a thick skin when you work in our sector and I was delighted that a colleague and former ACEVO member Sir Deian Hopkins, who was Vice Chancellor of London South Bank University, wrote to me to say,
"I was delighted at your New Year's message (The Times). I understand you have been having a few protests from those who have much and give little - frankly, there are far more of us out there who applaud your leadership and your advocacy of social justice. We live in difficult times - or, more correctly, we are about to live in even more difficult times. Yet, there is little sign that those who have profited in the past, including some who have been responsible for the economic problems we all face, are prepared to accept their share of responsibility. So your message was bound to hit a raw nerve, and so it should!! Long may you continue to be a scourge for the privileged, not can I envisage anyone preventing you from speaking your mind. Now you have this new status, you can make even more noise and even more loudly!"
And Deian, I shall!
This time it was for BBC Wales and an on air live discussion with an economist Professor Gerald Holtham about my call for a tax on bonuses to go to charity. I hope I gave a fair presentation of our case, and at least I had air time to once again highlight the problems that our sector face with a gaping hole on funding opening up.
We have been getting a lot of attention on this issue. Indeed we are apparently being reported in many places, not least the Hindustan Times and Qatar News. I feature in Blogs (one with the charming heading of "pipe down Sir Stephen"!). But more importantly, also The Wall Street Journal and Harvard Business Review. A sympathetic philanthropy journal in the States reports,
"The head of the U.K. Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations Stephen Bubb, is calling for a 50 percent tax on the bonuses that bankers are getting this year. Good for him! In the U.S., after having driven the economy into a devastating recession, banks are raking in record profits, even after they repay some of their TARP subsidies, and they have rewarded their top staff with amazingly lucrative bonuses.
Bubb is soon to be knighted. Perhaps the new title will help Sir Bubb push through his tough, creative proposal that he hopes will generate funding for Prime Minister David Cameron's big society bank.
The U.S. government has jawboned against these types of bonuses and in some cases has gotten top bankers to forego their six-and seven-figure treats. British bankers will get an estimated £7 billion in bonuses this year. Getting them to dedicate half that sum to the big society bank would be a kickstart and a half for the Tory/Liberal government's social program. Which U.S. nonprofits will call on this nation's banking sector to dedicate half of its huge recession surplus to American charities? — Rick Cohen."
Now it is sad that this has also involved a significant number of thoroughly offensive emails from bankers and calls to our office where members of staff have been abused down the phone. We have had to tell staff that their job does not involve having to put up with bankers who think they can behave in such a way. Of course this simply reinforces the view that many have that the banking industry is out of touch and does not understand the justifiable concern that we as taxpayers have about their behaviour when we bailed the banks out. We hear a lot about "bank bashing" but certain members of that profession think nothing of phoning ACEVO to "bash" us over the phone!
But you need a thick skin when you work in our sector and I was delighted that a colleague and former ACEVO member Sir Deian Hopkins, who was Vice Chancellor of London South Bank University, wrote to me to say,
"I was delighted at your New Year's message (The Times). I understand you have been having a few protests from those who have much and give little - frankly, there are far more of us out there who applaud your leadership and your advocacy of social justice. We live in difficult times - or, more correctly, we are about to live in even more difficult times. Yet, there is little sign that those who have profited in the past, including some who have been responsible for the economic problems we all face, are prepared to accept their share of responsibility. So your message was bound to hit a raw nerve, and so it should!! Long may you continue to be a scourge for the privileged, not can I envisage anyone preventing you from speaking your mind. Now you have this new status, you can make even more noise and even more loudly!"
And Deian, I shall!
Monday, 10 January 2011
Giving Generously
In my last post I was encouraging bankers to think about giving half their bonus to charity , if there is not to be a bonus tax. I was pointing to the example of a wealthy merchant who had founded Dulwich Picture Gallery. An article by Will Hutton in yesterday's Observer pointed to the example of America.
In May, America's two wealthiest citizens, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, arranged three separate dinners with those who occupied the positions directly below them in the US rich list: Michael Bloomberg, George Soros, Oprah Winfrey and the rest.
One result was that Buffett and Gates went public in June with what they called the Giving Pledge, an appeal to the conscience of their fellow billionaires that now was the time to donate half their wealth to solving some of the world's problems. So far, 40 have signed up. Buffett had set the ball rolling by pledging 99% of his $70bn (£45.5bn) fortune to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
You can see how the Giving Pledge is developing at givingpledge.org and read letters from, among others, Michael Bloomberg, Paul Allen, Ted Turner and George Lucas. Bloomberg writes: "The reality of great wealth is that you can't spend it and you can't take it with you. For decades, I've been committed to giving away the vast majority of my wealth to causes that I'm passionate about. And so I am enthusiastically taking the Giving Pledge, and nearly all of my net worth will be given away in the years ahead."
Sceptics say charity and aid never transformed societies. Gates and Buffett, though, point to the fact that in a few short years of their targeted health policies they have eradicated polio from all but three countries; they now have their sights on malaria. You can only hope the
Giving Pledge proves contagious. the bankers could set that ball rolling. I hope this gets taken up by the Treasury Select Committee tomorow..
In May, America's two wealthiest citizens, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, arranged three separate dinners with those who occupied the positions directly below them in the US rich list: Michael Bloomberg, George Soros, Oprah Winfrey and the rest.
One result was that Buffett and Gates went public in June with what they called the Giving Pledge, an appeal to the conscience of their fellow billionaires that now was the time to donate half their wealth to solving some of the world's problems. So far, 40 have signed up. Buffett had set the ball rolling by pledging 99% of his $70bn (£45.5bn) fortune to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
You can see how the Giving Pledge is developing at givingpledge.org and read letters from, among others, Michael Bloomberg, Paul Allen, Ted Turner and George Lucas. Bloomberg writes: "The reality of great wealth is that you can't spend it and you can't take it with you. For decades, I've been committed to giving away the vast majority of my wealth to causes that I'm passionate about. And so I am enthusiastically taking the Giving Pledge, and nearly all of my net worth will be given away in the years ahead."
Sceptics say charity and aid never transformed societies. Gates and Buffett, though, point to the fact that in a few short years of their targeted health policies they have eradicated polio from all but three countries; they now have their sights on malaria. You can only hope the
Giving Pledge proves contagious. the bankers could set that ball rolling. I hope this gets taken up by the Treasury Select Committee tomorow..
Bankers' bonuses; giving generously!
Tomorrow the Treasury Select Committee have a hearing on bank bonuses. Bob Diamond, the CEO of Barclays is appearing. His evidence will be interesting. There is speculation in the press about whether the top executives in the banks will forgo their bonuses. The Sunday press suggests pressure to do so.
In the absence of a tax on bonuses, I have a better suggestion. They should take the bonus but then donate 50% to charity; gift aided of course. This would be more fruitful than merely not taking the bonus and make a very public statement about the need to support the country's charities who are picking up the pieces as a result of the banking crisis and the subsequent spending cuts.
We need some grand gestures like this from people at the top of the banks. It would demonstrate the strong social commitment that David Cameron has called for from them.
There are indeed some in the banks who are remarkably generous and I'm sure will make a big gesture. But they are a minority. The very rich do not make the commitment to giving that many on lower incomes make. It was the point made in the Archbishop of Canterbury's Christmas message.
So tomorrow it would be good for Bob Diamond to make that public commitment , to set an example to his peers and to the country. It would signal to others that giving, at a time of huge stress in our wonderful charity sector , is crucial.
It is an example that has been set over the centuries. Yesterday I was at Dulwich Picture Gallery to celebrate the 200th anniversary of its foundation. The first public art gallery in the world. And it only happened through the enormous generosity of a rich merchant, Francis Bourgeous. When he died 200 years ago he left a fabulous art collection and money to pay for the erection of the Gallery. Sir John Soane gave his services for free in designing it.
It is grand gestures like that one that can make all the difference! Now I'm not suggesting Bob Diamond funds a new gallery- I'm sure he has his own charitable connections and causes, but I do hope we will see generosity from the bankers. And that is not about the spare change on the pocket or a table at a charity dinner ) fine though that is in itself ).
The British Bankers Association should be encouraging their members to give. To use our imperfect but useful gift aid system and to make a real difference. Instead of the usual bullish and often insensitive defence of bonuses make a statement that shows the banks understand the pressures on the taxpayers who bailed them out. The many loosing their jobs. The rising demand on charities when their costs are rising and the Government are cutting them. And to make that statement is not bank bashing!
I'm looking forward to listening to tomorrow's hearing. I'm hoping Bob will surprise us.
Gospel choir- St Martin- in-the-Fields at Dulwich chapel
The director of Dulwich Picture gallery at cake cutting time
200 years old! The cake!
In the absence of a tax on bonuses, I have a better suggestion. They should take the bonus but then donate 50% to charity; gift aided of course. This would be more fruitful than merely not taking the bonus and make a very public statement about the need to support the country's charities who are picking up the pieces as a result of the banking crisis and the subsequent spending cuts.
We need some grand gestures like this from people at the top of the banks. It would demonstrate the strong social commitment that David Cameron has called for from them.
There are indeed some in the banks who are remarkably generous and I'm sure will make a big gesture. But they are a minority. The very rich do not make the commitment to giving that many on lower incomes make. It was the point made in the Archbishop of Canterbury's Christmas message.
So tomorrow it would be good for Bob Diamond to make that public commitment , to set an example to his peers and to the country. It would signal to others that giving, at a time of huge stress in our wonderful charity sector , is crucial.
It is an example that has been set over the centuries. Yesterday I was at Dulwich Picture Gallery to celebrate the 200th anniversary of its foundation. The first public art gallery in the world. And it only happened through the enormous generosity of a rich merchant, Francis Bourgeous. When he died 200 years ago he left a fabulous art collection and money to pay for the erection of the Gallery. Sir John Soane gave his services for free in designing it.
It is grand gestures like that one that can make all the difference! Now I'm not suggesting Bob Diamond funds a new gallery- I'm sure he has his own charitable connections and causes, but I do hope we will see generosity from the bankers. And that is not about the spare change on the pocket or a table at a charity dinner ) fine though that is in itself ).
The British Bankers Association should be encouraging their members to give. To use our imperfect but useful gift aid system and to make a real difference. Instead of the usual bullish and often insensitive defence of bonuses make a statement that shows the banks understand the pressures on the taxpayers who bailed them out. The many loosing their jobs. The rising demand on charities when their costs are rising and the Government are cutting them. And to make that statement is not bank bashing!
I'm looking forward to listening to tomorrow's hearing. I'm hoping Bob will surprise us.
Gospel choir- St Martin- in-the-Fields at Dulwich chapel
The director of Dulwich Picture gallery at cake cutting time
200 years old! The cake!
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