Ideas@TheCentre
1 for the nanny state, 0 for commonsense
Two interesting items caught my eye in the British press this week.
The first was a report that more than 3,000 families whose child has been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are driving new cars leased to them
free-of-charge under the government’s Motability scheme.
This scheme, which began in 1978, aims to provide cars for severely disabled people and their carers so they find it easier to get around outside their homes. But as Jessica Brown’s recent CIS report makes clear, ‘disability’ is a remarkably elastic concept, and the more governments spend on schemes like this, the more ‘disabled’ people there appear to be.
In the United Kingdom, Motability drivers have grown by 40% in just 10 years, and they are now costing taxpayers £1.5 billion per annum.
More than half a million people have one of these free cars (Motability is the biggest car fleet in the country). All you have to do to get one is ask your doctor to write a reference and submit an application. More than half of those who apply get a car with no further checks being made. You get a new car, modified if necessary, and the government replaces it for you every three years.
Among the beneficiaries of this scheme are 3,000 parents of badly behaved – sorry, ADHD – children. They not only get a car but also disability carer’s allowance. Indeed, the number of people claiming cash benefits because they care for a child with ADHD has mushroomed from 800 a decade ago to 43,100 today. It seems Britain has an ADHD epidemic on its hands. Soon the roads will be jammed with cars with children throwing tantrums in the backseat.
The second item that caught my eye this week also involved children. It was reported that the Telford Junior Football League, which runs soccer for 2,000 players under the age of 16, is recording all victories as 1-0 wins so teams that get hammered won’t feel bad about it.
When I was playing junior football (soccer), we once got thrashed 21-2. That result can now be expunged from the record books. From now on I shall insist we only lost 1-0 (even though we scored two goals). This new dispensation to fiddle with the scores could be great news for the England football team at the next European championships. But I do wonder what Telford’s famous footballing son, Billy Wright (the first player to win 100 international caps) would have made of it.
Peter Saunders is a Senior Research Fellow at The Centre for Independent Studies.
