Good Intentions
Charity is great, but not for critical services.
It's hard to rely on my good intentions
When my head's full of things that I can't mention
It seems that I usually get things right
But I can't understand what I did last night
Song: Toad the Wet Sprocket.
The comedian Henning Wehn has said, “We don’t do charity in Germany. We pay taxes. Charity is a failure of governments’ responsibilities,” and I mostly agree with that. It could be my Prussian heritage, the Germanic origins of the Rockel family, but it’s more likely due to my being a raving socialist who thinks governments should look after people when they are in need.
When I see adverts asking for donations to provide the 169,000 Kiwi kids living in material hardship with the basics, I know it is well-intentioned, but something is deeply wrong.
That charitable response stems from a desire not to see children go without and a wish to help, which is admirable. However, in a first-world country, still wealthy compared to others, the government has failed if people have to resort to sponsorship.
And please save me the argument “It’s the parents’ responsibility”, that’s a lazy lie to justify cold hearts.
There might be some exceptions, as there are with all things, but bottom feeders love their children, too, Mr Luxon. Nobody in this country should be going without the basics, and that is on the government. To use an old phrase, parents can’t get blood from a stone.
There is a role for charity, of course, and it is essential for foundations and research that, realistically, the government is unlikely to fund. But charity should not be used to finance vital services, such as our hospitals and ambulances.
Last night on 1 News, there was an article on a new charity hospital in Wellington near Cuba St that is looking to open next year. It will be funded by donations and provide day-patient procedures to help thousands of people in the region.
Dr Graham Sharpe, of the Wellington Regional Charity Hospital, said, “We think this is an exciting development for healthcare in this city, and the fact that we’ve got generous donors, we’ve got professional people, medical, surgical, and nursing, willing to come and work for us for free says a lot about this city.”
It certainly does, but it also says a lot about the healthcare available in the region's public health system.
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The new hospital will be named after Dame Dorothy Spotswood, who, along with her partner, has agreed to fully fund the fit-out of the new facility. A remarkable gesture of generosity and a stark contrast to those with wealth who guard it and hoard it, even funding political parties to ensure that they don’t pay their fair share of tax.
So good on Ms Spotswood and partner, I applaud their kindness and commitment to the community, and it seems only right that the facility is named after the people who funded it. Yet the question in my mind, and the reason I favour taxing and spending by the government over private philanthropy, is how do we know we’re prioritising the right things?
The facility will have two operating theatres for individuals who cannot access treatment through the public system and are unable to afford private healthcare. Considering the current shortages and delays in the public system and the skyrocketing price of private medical insurance, I can only presume that the number of people in this category is increasing.
There are three other charity hospitals in NZ, and they showed an interview with Phil Bagshaw of Canterbury Charity Hospital, which is expanding with the construction of an extra ward in progress.
Bagshaw said, “The happiest day of my life would be if I could hang a sign on the door that said, ‘Not needed anymore, public hospital that way’. There should never be a need for charity hospitals. The government is supposed to provide free, adequate healthcare for the public.”
Well said, that man!
