Crisis in, and sustainability of, the british welfare state
| Autor | Jo Carby-Hall |
| Cargo | Director of International Legal Research Centre for Legislative Studies. University of Hull |
| Páginas | 221-239 |
Revista Derecho Social y Empresa nº 3, Julio 2015
ISSN: 2341-135X págs.221-239
CRISIS IN, AND SUSTAINABILITY OF, THE BRITISH
WELFARE STATE
JO CARBY-HALL
Director of International Legal Research
Centre for Legislative Studies. University of Hull
1. DEFINITION OF THE TERM “WELFARE STATE”
The welfare state is a government created policy in which the state plays an
important role in protecting and promoting the social and economic wellbeing of the
citizen. The main principles of the welfare state include the equitable distribution of
wealth,3 equality of opportunity and public conscience4.
2. A HISTORICAL NOTE
It was during the Liberal government’s5 welfare reforms of the period 1906 to
1914 that the modern welfare state came about. During that period much welfare
legislation was enacted6 providing welfare benefits to various classes of citizens.
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Jo Carby-Hall
Revista Derecho Social y Empresa nº 3, Julio 2015
ISSN: 2341-135X pág. 222
The British welfare state experienced a boost in 1945. It was in 1941 that the
British government under the premiership of Sir Winston Churchill commissioned a
report on how to rebuild the country, - through the provision of unemployment and
sickness insurance in the United Kingdom, - when the Second World War ended.
William Beveridge7 was the candidate chosen to chair this Commission as he had
previously written a book in 19108 treating unemployment and how to combat it. In
1942 the Beveridge Report9 was published advocating, inter alia, a national insurance
system in which every citizen of working age would contribute to on a weekly basis.
These contributions would provide social benefits to pensioners, the unemployed, the
widowed, and the sick.
The Report also made recommendations on other important social shortcomings,
which it called “the five giants,”: such as a national health service to treat the sick, the
reform of the existing education system to encourage scholarship, a social security
system to tackle poverty by providing citizens with adequate income, the abolition of
slums to be replaced by a new house building programme and government policies for
the creation of full employment.
The initial provisions of the Beveridge Report, having been well received,; came
into operation in 1944 when the Ministry of National Insurance was set up. It was the
influence of the Beveridge proposals which brought the Labour Party into power
immediately after the war in 1945. Clement Attlee campaigned on the Beverage
Report which he aimed to have in place by 1948, but which he never achieved since
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