BEVERIDGE REPORT

Beveridge Report: Welfare State and British Politics



Beveridge Report: Welfare State and British Politics

Introduction

Across world history, the world came across several social problems, such as poverty, unemployment, housing, education, inequality and many others. In order to overcome these issues, researchers and the government has formulated several reforms, which is the biggest problems in politics. The purpose of this essay to study the context of Rawntree and Booth, liberal reforms WW1, and 1930's depression unemployment that has pushed researchers to craft welfare reform and its underlying principles, such as Beveridge Report to overcome social issues; thus, the state can become a welfare state. This essay also addresses the founding principles of the welfare state in the Beveridge Report, as well as provides a comparison of Beveridge Report with consensus, social democracy and new right Thatcherism.

Discussion

The narrow definition of the welfare state includes two forms of spending arrangements of government: (a) monetary advantages to family units (transfer that include mandatory insurance of income) and (b) direct government or subsidies provision of human service (like old-age care, health care, education, pre-schooling and child care). In a broad context, the welfare state comprises regulation of price (agricultural price support and rent control), environmental policies, job-security legislation, work environment regulation and housing policies (www.bbc.co.uk).

Social policy can be defined as activities, legislation, principles and guidelines that have an effect on the living conditions necessary to human welfare. According to the Department of Social Policy, social welfare refers to an applied and interdisciplinary issue related with the scrutiny of societies' feedbacks to social needs.

In the 19th Century, we know more about poverty than before as several researchers have conducted surveys and provided comprehensive descriptions of the poor lives. The worst thing regarding poverty during 1880-1890 was the heartless attitudes of a number of Victorians. Most of the Victorian were believers of self-help. Thus, they believed that all individuals must be independent and do not look or ask for help. They also deemed that anybody might become victorious by hard work and thrift. Rationally, this refers that poor are responsible for their poverty. However, all Victorians did not feel like that and do not blame poor for their poverty.

Around 25% of the population was living below the poverty line at the end of the 19th Century. Surveys signified that about 10 percent people were poor and might not afford basic life necessities like food. About 15%-20% people had just enough money so that they can survive (given that they do not take off during illness or did not lose the job). During 1880-1890, there was a slight change in attitudes to poverty (Wright, T. 2013, pp.11-170). William Booth in 1865 formed the Salvation Army that turned out to be beneficial among the poor. In the 1890s, in number of places, teachers started offering poor children free breakfast (a mug of cocoa, jam and bread). Most of the poor children were half-starved, and there was no use to teach hungry ...