Acevo's acting chief executive Peter Kyle has called on Lord Nat Wei to resign from the Lords following his decision to quit as the government’s Big Society adviser less than a year into the role.
Lord Wei (pictured) now plans to work with the Community Foundation Network (CFN) in an unpaid advisory role. According to CFN, he will lead a new campaign "to build a country-wide movement of civic entrepreneurs dedicated to fostering a culture of philanthropy at a local level, making it easier for all citizens to get involved".
News of Lord Wei’s resignation as Big Society 'tsar' came yesterday evening, just one day after Prime Minister David Cameron had delivered another speech promoting his flagship Big Society policy. The Cabinet Office has now scrapped the role and Wei's responsibilities have shifted into the Downing Street policy unit, though the Cabinet Office was quick to stress that responsibility for the Big Society runs right across government.
Wei's resignation has attracted derision from the Opposition and the unions. Unite said it was “further evidence that the whole concept is bankrupt” while Tessa Jowell, shadow minister for the Cabinet Office, said the Big Society was “once again descending into farce”.
She added: “Only a day after Cameron told us all to take more responsibility, it appears that there will now be nobody in his government responsible for bringing the Big Society into reality."
Last week, in a House of Lords debate about the Big Society, Lord Wei told peers: “There is evidence that the more politicised a topic like this becomes, the less people may want to engage with it. With this, I must urge the Opposition in particular to be more responsible.
“Just as Labour’s love of spin-doctoring has eroded, at times, public trust in politics, the danger of bashing the Big Society may be that people end up wanting to get involved less, and focus on themselves and not on helping others around them just at the time when as a country we need to pull together.”
Kyle: Wei should quit the Lords
Last night, Peter Kyle used Twitter to urge Lord Wei to rescind his peerage, bestowed by the Prime Minister when he took on the unpaid Big Society role last year. Kyle wrote: “Nat Wei must resign from the Lords & make room for someone dedicated to Big Society. Civil society and our sector deserve nothing less.”
Later he wrote: “He took everyone for a ride. Final insult was resigning the day after PM speech = not even loyal. Can’t get lower in my book.”
On Wei's new role, Stephen Hammersley, chief executive of the Community Foundation Network, said: “Our primary interest is in stronger communities in the UK and helping local groups to reach out to others to give people a better future – and this is an area where we have a strong track record.
"Lord Wei expects to bring some ideas, plans, contacts and resources to the table that will help us do this more effectively and on that basis we are delighted that he wants to work with us."
