A plea from the heart

for Scotland's poor

this Easter

Martin Johnstone

 

Robert, homeless man in Perth
Photograph by Islay McLeod

 

Last Saturday saw the closing gathering of Scotland's first-ever Poverty Truth Commission. Based loosely on the model of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa, the commission has been meeting regularly over the last two years asking the simple but complex question: 'What do we need to do to fundamentally address the unacceptable levels of poverty and inequality which exist in Scotland today?'.
     It would be easy to dismiss the commission's findings as just the latest in the series of such reports which are published periodically and then gather dust in some government department or institutional office. That might yet prove to be its fate but, if it is, that would be a great pity – and a missed opportunity.
     For the last two years the commission has brought together two very different groups of people: some of Scotland's poorest citizens and some of Scotland's most influential and strategic thinkers. They came together out of a very special event held in Glasgow City Chambers two years ago – an event at which people in poverty spoke and others listened.
     At the end of the day some of those who had listened (and been profoundly moved) agreed to commit themselves to an ongoing process of coming together to listen, learn and work together. David Lunan, at that time the moderator of the Church of Scotland's General Assembly, notes: 'My abiding memory of the inaugural meeting of the Poverty Truth Commission was the stories of the testifiers, speaking from the heart about the effect of poverty on their lives. It was measured, authentic, positive, and very moving. It's people that change people, not concepts; and this was real'.
     The early meetings of the commission were difficult: trust had to be established; models of working had to be developed; and the balance between people and paper agreed. And yet the struggle has proven to be worth it. Perhaps one of the most spectacular – and not to be under-estimated – results of the commission has been that people from very different walks of life have not only learnt to trust one another but they have also become friends. And I do think that one of the really important lessons which we have learnt, in common with one of the seminal experiences of South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, is that we need to get beyond the labels (and the badges) and learn to see and value people as people.

 

     If there is one abiding message which the commission will seek to articulate it would be this: 'We cannot hope to understand let alone address the causes and symptoms of poverty unless we involve the experts'. Or to put it another way, picking up on the statement which has become the mantra of the commission's life together: 'Nothing about us without us is for us'. And the experts, in this context, are obviously the people who live with the grinding reality of poverty day in and day out.
     Such a conclusion doesn't sound like rocket science – and, of course, it isn't – but it is amazing how many agencies, organisations and government departments set themselves the target of tackling poverty but only peripherally, if at all, think of involving people with any direct experience. When I challenged this recently I was told that it was a problem but it was okay because we all know people who are poor. That seems parallel to me suggesting that I am qualified to speak on women's issues because my wife is a woman.
     So what happens now? In its findings the commission issues some challenges – we were fed up with the ongoing blizzard of recommendations. Some of them are very practical and relate directly to the specific issues with which we have been particularly concerned as a commission – tackling violence, supporting children in kinship care, and challenging the stereotyping of people in poverty. Others call for a different way of doing things – involving the experts in the development, implementation and ongoing evaluation of anti-poverty strategy.
     Personally I would like to introduce a new regulation whereby no government meeting could take place in which people were discussing poverty unless there were two people there with direct experience of it. It would lead to fewer meetings and those that did happen would be a lot more grounded and productive.
     Of course all of this is not just down to government – too much has been left at its door – but it is the responsibility of all of us. Again one of the exciting things about the commission is that we are not only issuing challenges (or recommendations) but we have also built the sort of relationships which means that some of the ways of working that we are advocating are now to be taken up by others.

 

     For example, some civil servants are going to develop a mentoring programme whereby those who have responsibilities within a particular policy area will be mentored by others who have direct experience of the issue. Or, at a time when we hear a great deal of the Big Society, the Scottish Government has agreed to ensure that people living in poverty are directly involved in what that concept might mean in Scotland. Or we will be working with colleagues to develop an Asylum Truth Commission operating around the principles of the work in which we have been involved.
     None of these commitments will, of themselves, change the world but each of them, we hope, will help to change the hearts and minds of a few people. As a nation we have spent too long, and too much money, trying to eradicate poverty without involving the real experts. The time is now right for a commitment to an alternative way of working. The commission, we believe, has helped to demonstrate that that model can work.
     The case is well made by two of our commissioners. Jim Wallace, former depute first minister comments: 'Through the commission I have become convinced that we are more likely to identify solutions to some deep-seated problems if politicians and officials involve those who experience the reality of poverty in their daily lives. That is the challenge to policy-makers and those who deliver public services at every level of government'.
     Blair Green, one of the often faceless statistics of in-work poverty, puts it this way: 'I can't change the past, but as for the future I want to make a difference. We're not going to stop after the Poverty Truth Commission. We're on the move. After this I want to say these things in Holyrood and in Westminster. I'm not stopping until things change'.

 

Martin Johnstone is secretary of the Poverty Truth Commission