This was because there was a commonly held belief that the deprived were responsible for there poor living conditions, as they did not work hard enough – like the upper-class did, some would argue. Yet, the Liberals did pass reforms between 1906 and 1914 in order to tackle this problem. For example, the Old Age Pension Act of 1908 and Education (Provision of Meals) Act of 1906. Two social surveys were published during this time, that not only shocked the British public but changed popular opinion on the causes of poverty. They helped pave the way for a whole range of Government-led welfare reforms.
Compassionate reasons where one of the underlying reasons many historians argue upon the realise of the report on poverty from booth and rowntree in their study of the English town York , a town not normally associated with extreme poverty they found 29% of the population were well below the poverty line. Another reason was the very real fear workers were discouraged by the poor conditions and governments and may later turn against the government and form mass strikes or in serious cases rebellion or join the communist groups within Britain. Political self interest was high on the liberal’s agenda many historians argue. The franchise was being extended to the average man slowly and the liberals realised the average man did not benefit much from the government’s approach to peoples life’s and with the rise of the labour party and other parties many historians argue that it was out of desire to be re-elected that the liberals slowly brought about this change in reform. They didn’t get a majority government in 1910 like they did in 1906 which led them to think that social reform was the way to gain votes.
In 1906 the Liberal government were being to realise the effect that poverty was having on the country as a whole including the Liberals ability to govern the country. Research carried out by reformers such as Charles Booth and Seebohm Rowntree influenced the Liberals and enlightened them to the state of poverty in our country. Looking at the research the Liberals saw that more than 30% of our population were living below the poverty line (that Booth had devised). From this they could clearly see that something needed to be done about this. The work of Booth and Rowntree had for the first time highlighted that fact that people were not in poverty just because they were lazy.
The New Liberals desire for change was backed up by the social investigations of Booth and Rowntree. These men discovered that the main causes of poverty were outwith the control of the individual, such as old age; sickness; unemployment and low wages. However, did the burst of legislation carried out by the ‘Liberal government from 1906-1914 to help the young, the elderly, the sick, the unemployed and low earners successfully tackle the problem of poverty at the turn of the 20th
To what extent was 1822 a turning point in British politics? The year 1822 is seen by some as a key turning point in British politics as it saw the introduction of liberal Tories, enforcing liberal attitudes upon parliament. However, I would argue that 1822 was not a turning point, but rather a year of half-hearted enforcements of reforms in order to avoid political unrest. In 1822, Lord Liverpool hoped that by introducing four key individuals, by the names of Canning, Peel, Huskisson and Robinson, into the cabinet, the social reforms they would introduce would reduce demand for political reform. I would argue that this decision would suggest continuity as opposed to change within the political system as it was a way for the Government to seem more liberal.
There were six main reasons that led to the old Poor Law Reform to easily pass which were: a willing government, Tories were a minority, Climate change, objectors were not listened to, and a Report based on evidence collected by the commission of enquiry. However, out of the six reasons, we will discuss only two of the reasons which were; a willing Government and the fact that the Tories were a minority. The Government wanted to reduce what it was paying out to the poor hence set up a Commission of Enquiry which produced a report. The results of the report had detrimental effects to the poor. As the results of this report were very significant, three important changes to the law were made; ‘centralisation, less eligibility, and the ‘workhouse test’ which required everyone in receipt of poor relief to enter the workhouse, regardless of individual circumstances’.
How important was the aim of reducing poverty in explaining Liberal Social reforms up to 1914How important was the aim of reducing poverty in explaining Liberal Social reforms up to 1914? (24 marks) Throughout their time in office the Liberal Government introduced a series of social reforms. Under the previous Conservaticve Government the issue of social reform had been avoided, leading to surveys being undertook by social analysists Booth and Rowntree. These showed that over a third of the British public were living under the poverty boundary, and that this was causing social degredation, starvation and disease. The outcome of the Liberal reforms widely suggests that the aim of reducing poverty was paramount.
Between 1906 and 1914, the liberal government took steps in the provisions of welfare policies in a bid to help the impoverished people of Britain. These steps indicated a move away from the non-intervention policy known as ‘laissez faire’ to a more ‘collectivist’ approach. The changes which took place signalled a huge change in attitude; the poor were no longer condemned, but were accepted as unfortunate but equal citizens, whose rights had to be acknowledged. The reforms aimed to help the young, old, unemployed and sick, as it was clear that these groups were more likely to endure poverty. Winston Churchill summed the nature of the liberal welfare reforms, ‘If we see a drowning man we do not drag him to the shore.
To do this effectively, we shall consider the implementation, conditions and effectiveness of the Irish Poor Law prior to the famine; its capacity to counteract the effects of the famine; other social policy measures introduced to relieve the impoverishment; how the Irish Poor Law was consequently forced to be amended to meet escalating demand and need; the success of these modifications; the further expansion of the Poor Law and its influence on social policies of succeeding years. The implementation, conditions and effectiveness of the Irish Poor Law prior to the famine The Royal Commission for Inquiring into the Conditions of Poorer Classes in Ireland was effectuated in 1833 (Burke, 1987). Also known as The Whately Commission, it construed its mandate “as endeavouring to prevent existence of destitution, rather than merely devising means for alleviating misery as it had arisen” (Burke, 1987:19). It acknowledged the distaste of the Irish towards the workhouse prototype and made the prediction that those capable of tolerating miserable conditions would, rather than subscribe to a workhouse (Burke, 1987). The Whately Commission declined the idea of extending English Poor Law of 1834 to Ireland-system of poor relief established on the workhouse and financed by local property tax-and instead devised alternative strategies to inhibit prevailing destitution.
Before the reforms were passed by Parliament, Britain was controlled by wealthy landowners and aristocrats. The workers began to realize they were not being well represented in the government. So the British citizens began to call for social and political reforms. The demands for reforms became too strong to ignore, and finally, Parliament agreed to change the electoral laws. While Parliament was agreeing to the Reform Act of 1832, one of its members, Michael Sadler was out investigating the treatment of children in the British Textile factories.