How significant was the Beveridge Report in the creation of the welfare state after WW2 ?

Intro

• Factors: Beveridge Report, Experience of WW2, pre war welfare

• It is largely inaccurate to say that the Beveridge Report was the most significant factor that led to the creation of the welfare state

• War shifted public zeitgeist which subsequently prompted the creation of the report

1. Beveridge Report

• POINT:

  • Report set out the vision for post war Britain → was the blueprint for social welfare in the post war era

• EVIDENCE:

  • William Beveridge in 1942 → called for protection for all from the cradle to the grave

  • Five giants needed to be overcome to improve social conditions → squalor by rehousing, want through national insurance, disease through NHS, ignorance through enhanced education, idleness through maintaining full employment

  • More active role for the state in providing welfare → more inclusive welfare system → for that reason report advocated for universal benefits → flat rate of contributions from all wage earners to pay for comprehensive benefits

  • Increase in welfare spending → costing 697m pounds

  • Report was popular → sold 635,000 copies

• ANALYSIS:

  • Profound impact → a coherent, consolidated programme for post war reconstruction → garnered mass support → political pressure to adopt these reforms

  • Impact can be seen in practical incorporation of report in post war Lab provisions → policies directly inspired by report like National Insurance Act 1946 creating unemployment and sickness benefits for all workers

  • But → report alone did not inspire welfare state → had the experience of WW2 not led to a shifting zeitgeist and consensus that welfare needed radical reform → report may not have been embraced as blueprint

  • War → shifted public mood → reason why report was so popular and inspired Labour

2. Experience of WW2

• POINT:

  • WW2 → triggered widespread consensus that welfare provision needed radical overhaul → experience inspired report recommendations

• EVIDENCE:

  • War greatly enlarged role of state → took on powers to ensure welfare of population → control over evacuation and rationing

  • First evacuation in 1939 → relocated 1.5m children from cities to the countryside to protect them from bombimg

  • January 1940 → gov introduced rationing→ controlled distribution of scare resources due to war effort→ weekly ration per adult was 4 ounces of bacon, 2 ounces of butter, 8 ounces of sugar → to ensure fair distribution of goods during shortages

• ANALYSIS:

  • Government was able to ensure equitable access to essential resources → demonstrated that state was able to successfully guarantee welfare, success of this increased belief in state intervention to improve lives post war

  • Evacuation→ highlighted ability of gov to protect those most at risk → to organize large scale social interventions → gov able to do so at a national level post war

  • Evacuation also exposed persistant inequalities → host families witnessed first hand the poor health and inadequate welfare support available to the vulnerable → more sympathy → greater support for a more inclusive form of welfare → Bli

  • WW2 inspired the provisions of the Beveridge Report → war accentuated potential of state intervention to help people → also exposed shortcomings of existing system → these experiences were the basis of the Beveridge Report which called for a growth in state intervention and a radical overhaul of the current system

  • War experiences led to shifting zeitgeist → this change in public mood made report so popular → report may not have been so popular ans accepted had the war not shifted attitudes

3. Pre-war welfare

• POINT:

  • Not only WW2 that demonstrated the potential of state intervention in improving the welfare of the population → pre-war provisions did so → also highlighted the need for a universal approach

• EVIDENCE:

  • 1920 Unemployment Insurance Act → expanded unemployment insurance scheme introduced in 1911 → state took on a larger role by increasing coverage from 4m workers in 1919 to 11.4m in 1921

  • Government demonstrated its ability to manage extensive, widespread welfare programs

  • Additionally → while these early developments showcased the potential of state intervention to improve the lives of the marginalized → coverage was limited

  • 1930s means test → took into account all household income when assessing benefit → was bitterly resented as very strict financial thresholds required to qualify for assistance → only provided to those who could prove they were fully financially destitute

  • Led to 1932 National Hunger March where 3,000 unemployed men walked to London demanding end of means test

• ANALYSIS:

  • PROFOUND impact on the development of post war welfare state → showcased potential of the state to help the marginalized → also brought to light the shortcomings of the current welfare system and the urgent need for reform

  • Not just WW2 that did so → state saw their role increase long before the war → welfare provision has also long been inadequate→ war just spotlighted these already existing issues