[cma-l] not all gloom?

[Bill Best]

On 18 May 2010 14:46, Phil Korbel <phil.korbel at googlemail.com> wrote:
> Hi all

Hi

> I, like many was a tad cynical about the whole 'Big Society' thingummy -
> especially it was said to have died a death on the canvassers' doorsteps. I
> didnt expect to see hide nor hair of it thereafter...but low and behold -
> here we have a 'vision paper' on that very subject from No 10 which includes
> this phrase -

Here's the Cabinet Office press release:

http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/newsroom/news_releases/2010/100518-news-big-society-launch.aspx

The Big Society programme is here:

http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/media/407789/building-big-society.pdf

> 'The government will use funds from dormant bank accounts to set up a ‘Big
> Society Bank’, which will ‘provide new finance for neighbourhood groups,
> charities, social enterprises and other non-governmental bodies’.

According to the link below, the Government passed the Dormant Bank
and Building Society Accounts Act in November 2008. One of the major
principles of the Act is to reinvest unclaimed money back into the
community - so I'm not sure that the 'ConDems' can entirely claim this
idea as one of their own:

http://www.unclaimedfinances.co.uk/facts-dormant-bank-accounts-government-act.html

> A new source of revenue for community media - and Big Society [cough - sorry
> it still sticks in my throat] surely needs a place to talk?
>
> Of course we'll be scrabbling for that pot along with all and sundry but
> hey...

It is estimated that there is around £500 million in unclaimed money
sitting in dormant bank accounts. And that there is also a further
unclaimed £435 million sitting in National Savings and Investments
accounts.

Mechanisms for distributing the funds can include banks donating the
money directly to charity, and funds being donated to the Big Lottery
Fund with funds then distributed into various community projects.

> bests

Regards

> Phil

Bill
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