P10 - New Liberalism and welfare reforms 1906-14

Key current issues

-militant TUs

-rise of labour party

-women suffrage movement

-poverty and falling behind economic rivals

-aggressive German foreign policy

-HOL blocking bill power

-socialist movements of syndicalism

-Irish question

Campbell Bannerman

PM 1905-08 of Liberals

introduced help to disadvantaged children as can’t help themselves

Classic Liberalism

freedom to do things

-However you need freedom from poverty in order to have freedom to do what you want

-self help and retrenchment + laissez faire

New Liberalism

-Asquith replaced Gladstonian liberalism with New liberalism

liberal reforms had been more far-reaching than previous reforms

-suggesting a system to help those most vulnerable or can’t help themselves

-tackling poverty through a social state welfare

more state intervention via taxation to aid those who can’t help themselves

How New liberalism developed

originally Gladstone ignored it e.g. Joe Chamberlain and the Newcastle Programme as focused on Ireland

-growing awareness of poverty extent

-Labour party emergence, as if Liberal wanted to survive, they needed working class support

-concerns over national efficiency

-collectivism, with the govs responsibility to address the basic needs of its ppl

Liberal reforms reason

-New Liberalism ideology emerging + unify the Liberal party from division

-lack of working class reforms led to failure of Conservatives in 1906 so won’t make same mistake

-Tus fear of revolution and labour party threat, with 29 Labour MPs in 1906

-existing 1860s legislation or agencies couldn’t deal with the scale of poverty

-Social research from 1891 Booth and 1901 Rowntree books suggested the poor weren’t lazy and it wasn’t a life choice

-Wanted Fairness with 1/3 pop living bad

-need for a health work force

LG and Churchill both wanted schemes for fighting national poverty with social reforms. Both ambitious, but this would also further help their careers

Welfare state

A system in which the state (gov) plays a key role in the protection and promotion of the economic and social well-being of its citizens.

based on the principles of equality of opportunity, equitable distribution of wealth, and public responsibility for those unable to help themselves

Asquith

-CB put liberals on path of social reform, with Asquith as Chancellor

Asquith PM in 1908-1916 where the bulk of reforms took place

-made LG chancellor of Exchequer. LG and Churchill created the rep of the Liberals as a great reforming ministry

Main focuses for reforms

-Children and poorest families

-elderly

-poverty resulting in sickness and unemployment

-measures to improve pay and conditions at work

Measures to help children

most directly vulnerable group, with a strong emotional appeal

-1906 Provision of meals act - LEAs COULD provide meals for “needy children” by charging additional rates - permissive until 1914 and not universal

-1907 Medical inspection act - school medical inspections at school time by a qualified doctor being compulsory at least 3X during school life - LEAs COULD provide free treatment

-1908 Children’s act/Charter - belief of improving conditions of the young and treating their offences would achieve “National efficiency”

• juvenile courts to remove children offenders + rehab programs

• severe penalties for ill treatment of children + sale of tobacco and alcohol to kids

• illegal for kids to beg on street, as given child allowance in 1909 budget

-act was a liberal achievement but only repeated many existing laws

Old age pensions

CB resigned due to health and replaced by Asquith with LG as Exchequer

-prior there was no state pensions for elderly, with many expected to keep working and save enough to live, but most ended up reliant on family or in workhouses

-GER and New Zealand already had this policy of pensions

-pensions act present on LG budget

1908 Old age pensions act

payments to local post office. It was non-contributory and came from taxation of the wealth.

• ppl over 70 or made 21< annual income got a pension of 25 pence per week

• ppl with annual >21 got reduced payments

• 31< got no pay

• 7 shilling and 6 pence to married couples

-excluded ppl in prison in previous 10 years, those who failed to work regularly, ppl who claimed poor relief in the previous year

by 1914, 97,000 claimed for old aged pensions. Cost £12 mil a year

Act pros/ cons

ppl released from threat of work houses

no need to contribute so not a financial burden

collectivism principle of state intervention

• staring age of 70 was a tough milestone

• not universal as act not for everyone

• wasn’t generous pay, and didn’t raise them above the poverty line

• calculated it cost double than expected

1911 National insurance act

introduced by LG in 2 parts to protect workers from sickness and unemployment

faced opposition:

• 5 mil already paid into private insurance or Tus so unhappy as compelled to pay into this

• Labour felt it should be funded totally by taxation

(sickness) National insurance act

compulsory scheme , designed to improve national efficiency, covering 13m ppl/40mil

-covered workers for 6 months by paying out weekly benefits of 10 shillings for 13 weeks and 5 for 13 weeks

-contributions of 4d from employer and 3 d from employee an 2d from state

-maternity grants of 30 shillings

-workers had right to free medical treatment + medicine, with Drs chosen on a National insurance panel by patients

• only covered workers earning <£160

• ended at 60, so 10 year wait till old age pensions

• covered only the worker

• state contribution was so small

(Unemployment) National insurance act

work of Churchill + William Beveridge

-targeted at trades where unemployment were high regularly e.g. seasonal jobs, where unemployed worker receive a 7 shillings a week up to 15 weeks

-funded by compulsory weekly contributions of 2 and a half pence from employer + employee + 2d from gov

-state contribution came from taxation

-covered 2.25 m ppl

• not universal

• small state contribution

• labour felt should all be from taxation

• Both acts made insurance companies, friendly societies feel threatened

• not designed to solve long term unemployment

Legislation affecting workers

1905 Unemployed workmen act - renewed og act

1906 Trade disputes act - reversed Taff Vale judgement, making peaceful picketing legal

1906 Workmen’s Compensation act - extended provision for compensation to ppl earned <£250 or injured/disease in work. Covered 6 mil workers

1908 Coal mines act - limited miner work hours underground to 8 + improved safety reg

1909 Trade boards act - Churchill work. Set up fix min wage and inspected conditions in certain trade. Only covered “sweated trades” who exploited cheap labour

1909 Labour exchanges act - provided place where workers can look for a job, and employers to find workers

1909 Housing and Ton Planning act - compulsory slum clearance . With very few council used their power to build council houses

1911 Shop act - gave workers a half day holiday a week

1913 Trade union act - reversed Osborne judgement, so allowed TU members to give funds to a TU

conciliation boards in 1912 set up to try and avoid strikes + District boards created to establish min wage for miners in local areas

Pro view of Liberal reforms

-created min standard, taking steps to a social service state

-1st time any gov provided welfare benefits as a right

-idea the poor of lazy was disappearing

-shift of liberal ideology

-reforms provided a model for future govs

Negatives

didn’t create a welfare state

no long term plan to eliminate poverty or unemployment

many legislations were permissive and not universal

funds provided were seen as inadequate and not generous enough

labour felt things didn’t go far enough

still falling behind rivals Germany

acts exceeded the predicted costs

-Tus militant in 1910-14 suggests discontent with reforms