Transcript Labour Welfare Reforms 1945-51

Legacy of the war-time Coalition
Government
• While the post-war Labour Government passed the reforms between
1945 and 1951 which created the Welfare State, it was the war time
Coalition government that laid the foundations for much of the
changes.
• During the war, government control over peoples lives was taken for
granted, for example, rationing, conscription etc, something that had
been traditionally resisted by many politicians in peacetime.
• However, there seemed to be no reason in why governments should
not continue to play a major role in peoples lives when the war was
ended. It was this mindset that allowed Labour to establish their
reforms after 1945.
Beverage Report
• The basis for Labour’s post-war reforms came from the
Beverage Report of 1942.
• Sir William Beverage headed an Inter-departmental
Committee looking into social insurance provision.
• Beverage wanted a social insurance policy which would
protect people from loss of income in cases of
unemployment, sickness and old age.
• Also Beverage wanted to ensure that people had a
guaranteed income of subsistence level which would
cover their needs i.e. food, clothing, housing etc.
• Under Beverage’s plan everyone would pay into the
scheme and everyone would be entitled to benefit.
These benefits would, therefore, be given as a right thus
the degrading ‘means test’ would not be need.
Beverage cont,
• Beverage identified five giants which had to be tackled
these were, want, disease, ignorance, squalor and
idleness.
• Being a Liberal, however, Beverage wanted private
funding as well as state money to solve these problems.
• Beverage insisted that a ‘social revolution’ was not
needed to solve these problems more it was a matter of
common sense which would require no great increase in
public spending.
• The Beverage Report was very popular when published
becoming a best seller and knocking the war of the front
page.
Five Giants
• As noted the Beverage Report laid the
foundations for Labours post war reforms.
For example,
• Want
• Disease
• Ignorance
• Squalor
• Idleness
Labour Welfare Reforms 1945-51
Landslide Victory
• The Labour Government 1945-51 introduced a wide range of
reforms in a short period of time.
• This ‘Social Revolution’ was achieved due to a number of reasons.
• Labour came to power in 1945 with a landslide victory, winning 393
seats compared to the Conservative’s 213.
• Considering Churchill’s war record this was astonishing!
• The result emphasised the British publics desire for future radical
social change rather than dwelling on past glories.
• They also remembered the failure of Lloyd George to deliver the
Liberal promise of ‘a land fit for heroes’ after the Great War and
were hesitant about voting for any party not wholly committed to
social reform.
So how do we explain this desire to establish a new society after 1945?
Cradle to Grave
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Labour entered government with a commitment to provide social welfare from ‘Cradle
to Grave’.
Labour were in the best position to create such a society.
Churchill had promised reform but spoke to often of the cost.
The Conservatives were implicated in the failure of the National Government in the
1930’s.
The Depression of the 30’s had to be avoided, therefore the electorate turned to
LABOUR, the party least to blame and most committed to social reform.
The Conservatives were also haunted by Chamberlain’s policy of appeasement. “It
was not Churchill that lost the 1945 election it was the ghost of Neville Chamberlain”
Harold Macmillan.
“The Conservative Party had not much to offer at that time to those who wished to
see change, and we relied heavily upon the personality of Churchill… but as it turned
out we overestimated the effect this would have on their voting. People distinguished
between Churchill the war leader, and the Conservatives as a peace time
government.”
Reginald Maudling, Memoirs 1978.