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Leading article

Unto us a Child is Born

Wednesday, 12th December 2007

The Spectator on what parents owe their children

Much worse, we have created a value structure in which the interests of children do not have automatic priority over the ambitions of parents. It used to be said that, on becoming a parent, a person ceased to be the picture and became the frame. Sadly, that metaphor no longer characterises modern parenthood. All too many men and women now assume that, once a child is born and pronounced healthy, the pursuit of career and selfish fulfilment can be resumed. It is often true that both parents work because they have to. But it is not universally so. The very fact that we now speak so glibly about ‘work-life balance’ and ‘quality time’ with our children — expecting a pat on the back for doing so — shows how far we have drifted.

Better ‘child care’ is hailed as the answer to everything. Politicians vie for votes with ever more bounteous promises: from April 2008, all town halls will have a legal obligation to offer ‘sufficient child care’. The government wants all primary schools to provide facilities between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. Thus will these public institutions of learning become a network of glorified crèches.

Of course, for those who have to work to make ends meet, child-care provision is essential. But it should be treated as a second-best necessity rather than a cause for celebration. There is a growing body of research that demonstrates the adverse consequences for children — emotional and educational — who spend too many hours a week away from their parents and their home. The pioneer in this field is the controversial Professor Jay Belsky of Birkbeck College, London. But more familiar experts on childhood, such as Dr Penelope Leach, are reaching similar conclusions. Their findings do not sit easily with modern liberal values. But parenthood is not designed to suit the lifestyle preferences of the adult. It is a sacred, lifelong obligation, as well as an unparalleled blessing.

Christmas is a time of joy and celebration, but it should also be a time of reflection. The image of the Nativity — so beautifully described by Cardinal Cormac Murphy- O’Connor on page 22 — is more than a luminous devotional tableau. It should also be a spur to individual conscience — and a warning to every generation that the neglect of children comes in many forms.

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M Stewart

December 28th, 2007 6:17am

I am surprised there are no comments on such a wonderful editorial. It is not preachy but communicates a timely message at an appropriate time. I have emailed it to many people. Thank you.

A child of our time

From the economic and psychological bedlam of the global downturn has emerged a particularly dangerous false dichotomy: namely, that there is somehow a choice for ministers over the next few years between economic reconstruction and the repair of Britain’s broken society, and that the government (whether Labour or Conservative) must prioritise the former at the expense of the latter.

Diary

Anne Robinson

The daughter and I spent the last few days before the American election in Arizona.

Politics

Fraser Nelson

Fraser Nelson reviews the week in politics

The Spectator's Notes

Charles Moore

‘A money-financed tax cut is essentially equivalent to Milton Friedman’s famous “helicopter drop” of money.’ So said Ben Bernanke, now the chairman of the Fed, in a speech about how to ward off the ‘extremely small’ chance of deflation, which he delivered in 2002.