I defy anyone to tell me we’re doing fine.
We are now in more than £2 trillion pounds of debt, and our country is on the brink of collapse.
The class divide is larger than ever, our NHS is on its knees, and nothing seems fit for purpose anymore – not even our government.
I did not vote for them and I did not choose our Prime Minister. Yet, when they came into power in December, I was hopeful and optimistic. They could prove to us that they had what it takes. Here was a chance to show us, the nation, that they can face the music and speak for the many, not the few. But as always, we were let down. The country has been put into utter shame and dismay, leaving many people without any hope for the future.
This country is in ruin, and we know whom to blame
Let’s go back, just for a minute, to 2016. Theresa May was in power at the time, and the government was getting things done, and one of those things was Exercise Cygnus. This was a three-day programme run by NHS England in order to test the UK’s capacity to cope with the H1N1 Influenza virus, should it cause a pandemic.
We failed.
It stated that if we were to have a pandemic, the NHS would collapse due to a lack of resources. However, it did give 4 key learning points and 22 further recommendations, which were passed on to the government. What did Theresa May do about this? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Then we come to 2020. The 31st January sees our first Covid-19 case, and we aren’t ready for it. We were never ready for it, as 2016 demonstrated, but the public doesn’t know that yet. By the 23rd March, we saw our country deserted and empty as we entered a full national lockdown — only to be reassured by Boris Johnson that this would all be over by Christmas.
Since then, we have spent over £30 billion trying to combat Covid-19, which may sound justified. I mean, this is the biggest problem of the generation. However, what they’re not telling you is how much of that money has been wasted.
To start with, Matt Hancock bought millions of pounds worth of antibody tests from China. Which sounds like a reasonable investment. However, these tests were faulty and did not work. Now, whilst this wasn’t strictly the government’s fault, it is their responsibility to check products before they are officially purchased. After all, you wouldn’t buy a £20 million house without checking that everything on the deeds were correct and that it all lived up to your expectations, would you?
Next, there was the PPE. A life-saving investment to protect millions of key frontline workers from the perils of the pandemic. So, our government bought it — £8 billion worth of it, actually. But, what they didn’t want you to know is that this sheer amount of money was heavily wasted and unnecessary. How come? Because they failed to prepare for this kind of pandemic beforehand (see Exercise Cygnus). So now, when PPE was urgently needed, more had to be spent than necessary because demand rose astronomically. We ended up paying up to 70c for a simple surgical mask that could have cost as little as 15c. And all because our government wasn’t prepared.
Picking up the pieces
So, with all of this wasted money, an economy on the brink of collapse, and now a new Brexit deal that is frankly worse than being in the EU, the argument stands: this government has been ruinous for the country.
We will now have a harder time getting abroad. Paperwork must be filled in before travel to EU countries is permitted – which were previously document-free. Anyone wanting to study abroad may now never get that chance. People’s taxes will forever be high, since all of this debt has to be paid back somehow. Our NHS could forever be broken, with us having to wait record times for appointments at the risk of becoming unwell from having to wait longer for treatment than previous generations. The high street could be gone as we know it, our cinemas could never return and the idea of going to the pub just seems out of reach. This country will never be what it once was, and 2020 has showcased a taster of that.
And just like every other problem that the ‘Baby Boomer’ generation has caused, it will be us young people paying back for it. We will have to pick up the pieces, pay back the debt and put this broken country back together.
Climate change, Brexit, debt, the economy… . We have been brought up in a world that was always destined for ruin, and they have done nothing about it. Scientists have tried to tell governments, but they’ve plugged their ears. Economists have shown the future of our money, but they’ve chosen to keep their eyes shut. Everyone has been screaming at them for change and repair, but they appear to be deaf to the people’s cries. We were a train that was always destined to crash, having pressed the brakes after it was too late.
Our government has broken this country. Unfortunately, it won’t be them putting it back together again.
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