Liberal Reform 1906-1914

The first task undertaken by the new Liberal government was the welfare of children. The issue of malnourished children had increasingly surfaced since the extension of rate aid to all schools and creation of Local Education Authorities in 1902, so the issue of children too hungry or generally debilitated was well documented by 1906. A report from the Committee on Physical Deterioration noted inadequate feeding-"It is the height of cruelty to subject half starved children to the process of education". To solve this pr

In the main, working people were unimpressed by Liberal reforms; the decline of wages and the increase in job insecurity seemed to outweigh the benefits of any welfare legislation. Although they did not create a welfare state or solve poverty, the Liberals did reduce the chances of poverty for working class families and old aged people, with such legislation as the National Insurance Act and Pensions Bill. The introduction of health inspections, food provision and juvenile courts for children helped to reduce the numbers of homeless, sick and hungry children. They also attempted to regulate the treatment of workers with the introduction of working hours and minimum wages in some industries. The fact that there were huge exclusions to Liberal legislation adds to the idea that Liberal rule was not successful with dealing with poverty and need.

Unemployment insurance covered far less workers: some 2.25 million, mainly in construction and engineering trades, which were susceptible to fluctuating employment levels. This insurance also required payment from the worker. Weekly contributions were 2.5d each from workers, employers and the Government, which entitled the workers to a payment of 7s a week for up to a maximum of 15 weeks. As mentioned before, there is an argument that the policy was in fact encouraging poverty, as workers had a pay cut and were only covered for a maximum of 15 weeks, which meant after this period they would have no financial support. The help provided by this scheme was useful to the worker, as it meant they were not immediately poor. It therefore reduced the chances of poverty as people had 15 weeks to look for another source of income. However, people who were already poor when this scheme was introduced were not helped by it, which was a fault from the government's management of the poverty situation.

The insurance companies and friendly societies collected millions of pounds a year from working-class families, which may explain why it took so long to negotiate suitable compromises and safeguards with the various companies. Wealthier medical practitioners led the opposition from the doctor's organisation and the British Medical Association, because they feared that the status of their profession might be compromised. The British Medical Association was appeased through the panel system, which allowed insured patients to choose their own doctor from the panel of practitioners under the control of a local health committee. This proved popular with the less well off doctors, especially those in the inner cities, who quickly saw that their incomes must rise from this new source of patients.

Some topics in this essay:
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