Opinion: ‘It’s time to abandon cheap rhetoric and embrace thinking before acting’

The Prime Minister has said a great deal about how Britain needs to get more fit. There are sound reasons to combat obesity: there is a link between being overweight and how badly the coronavirus can affect one’s health.

All well and good. But if this is the case, then how come there is still lingering uncertainty around the leisure facilities that the people of Peterborough need to get more exercise?

The contract between Peterborough City Council and Vivacity has ended. While the lockdown bears some of the blame, it is true that cuts have taken their toll, and made the current deal unsustainable.

The council has re-taken over the facilities; I don’t find it at all coincidental that the ones which are scheduled to re-open, e.g. Premier, Werrington and Bushfield gyms are the ones which most probably turned a profit. The Lido and others, which were less profitable, remain shut. It’s very convenient that the coronavirus can be blamed.

We have had public shows of support from a Conservative former politician; nevertheless, the cuts remain. The facilities remain shut, yet we are told that we have to get more fit.

This is what you get when you have a government that is ruled by panic rather than thought.

They panic at budget figures, then they cut, without much regard for what is cut. They shut down leisure facilities, but then Covid 19 shows the importance of fitness, so they want people to get fit but some of the facilities remain shut.

A calm, sensible government would have looked at the situation over a longer term. There were reasons to invest in leisure and sports which pre-date the pandemic. If we want to reduce pressure on our NHS, and give it greater space to cope with crises, we should invest in programmes which emphasise prevention. Regular exercise may have an incremental effect on an individual, but if many individuals undertake more exercise, the aggregate will be less cost to the NHS, and more people recovering from Covid 19. Overall, the government saves money.

The problem with panic is that it crowds out deliberation: we must do something now, until the next something comes along.

The difference between Conservative and Labour approaches has often been anchored in how we view the role of government. Labour believes that we ought to use the state to ensure the public good; the Conservatives would rather leave that to the free market. However, the pandemic has shown the limits of the free market: the free market can adapt to pandemic situations but by itself it cannot provide the services or employment we need to have a functioning society. The Conservatives, having such a negative view of government, are rushing around trying to learn what to do. Panic pulls them one way and another, and we are left with photo opportunities, slogans, and poor outcomes.

It’s time to abandon cheap rhetoric and embrace thinking before acting. It’s time to work towards overall results, rather than deflecting poor headlines for a brief period. It’s time to look at leisure facilities in our city as part of an overall calculus, which has at is heart the idea that a healthier society is better society in every respect. The Labour group will keep working towards this end.