Calling for change: Fighting for carer rights during the General Election
Dominic Carter, Director of Policy and External Affairs at Carers Trust, shares his experiences during the General Election campaign.
The announcement
I was in the office on the day the General Election was announced. Political commentators and bookies had predicted a November date. But rumours grew throughout the day.
Even so, it was a shock to watch Rishi Sunak confirm, in the pouring rain, that 4 July was the big day.
My first thought was Carers Week. My heart sank, as I knew our event bringing carers and local carer services to 10 Downing Street couldn’t go ahead.
I also felt frustrated that work we had in motion with government departments and politicians would be paused or even cancelled.
But I was excited too, anticipating a high-octane six weeks doing what I love. I felt energised and optimistic at the prospect of a refresh and reset. Whatever new government we got would give us opportunities to call for change for carers.
Our strength as an organisation is our networks, powered by hardworking colleagues on the ground in carer services across the UK.
A priority for our team was to work out how to share clear information with them, explaining what was happening, what it might mean for them and how to get involved.
Our calls for carers
There’s a lot to think about when you’re setting out what you want from a new government. Carers Trust is just one of thousands of organisations that wanted to capture hearts and minds during the election campaign.
To do this, we led with the things that carers tell us have the biggest impact on their lives, and that would resonate most with the public.
Our message had to be simple, digestible and hard-hitting. We kept people at the heart of our campaigning and focused on three priorities – stopping carers being pushed to the limit, ending carer poverty and protecting young carers’ futures.
Of course we didn’t come up with this overnight. We’d been collecting evidence and Dominic testing our ideas with carers, so we could be confident that their voice was heard loud and clear.
Behind the scenes meetings with political parties and civil servants meant there weren’t too many surprises in the manifestos.
I was happy to see such a focus on care from the Liberal Democrats, and disappointed there wasn’t more within Labour and Conservative plans.
Ed Davey sharing his own story as a carer was a real highlight of the campaign for me. His successful storytelling demonstrated that carers’ issues can really connect with voters.
Election night
Election night was tense. The outcome would shape my work and the political standing of carers for years to come.
I wondered, would there be a change in government? Would they have a majority that allows for clear decision-making and a strong opposition to keep them in check? Would the candidates we’ve connected with retain or win their seats?
With so much at stake, I opted to watch at home with my partner, Sally. Armed with plenty of snacks, we flicked between channels eager to find out if the exit polls were correct.
I’m always taken by the sheer number of people, often volunteers, who make the whole thing happen. Watching peaceful democracy in action is a powerful thing.
By 2am, the outcome seemed clear and I headed for bed. I’m definitely not a morning person, but I was up early.
A new government meant a busy day for our team, welcoming new Ministers as they were announced, working out how best to interact with new MPs and keeping our networks informed.
It also meant new chances to represent the interests of carers and the issues affecting them.
As I write this, we are considering the massive effects that cuts to the winter fuel allowance, and the increased energy cap, will have on carers.
So the work continues, and we face it every day with vigour and passion.
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