How successful was the Labour Government from 1945- 1951?

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How successful was the Labour Government from 1945- 1951?

The Labour party enjoyed great success whilst in power but also faced terrible hardships, this balance between the two led to labour having a partial success during the years 1945 to 1951. Post war Britain was in dire need of reform, over ¼ million houses had been destroyed throughout the blitz, factories were left dishevelled and the people were tired and in need of change. Atlee and the Labour party gained a landslide victory by promising a country of fair shares for all, whether they were sick, old, jobless or poor. The idea of Atlee’s New Jerusalem gripped the country and became the main part of the Labour manifesto but with huge economic burdens from the war was it too much for him to promise.  

At the heart of Atlee’s New Jerusalem and the major success of the Labour party was the creation of the National Health Service in July 1948. The NHS was a revolution across the world at the time of its creation, it was the first non-contributory health care system that was accessible to people of all ages, sex and social class. Previous schemes such as National Insurance provided very limited cover and basic medical care, doctors bills became a heavy burden on families and led to many parents neglecting their own health. The NHS provided a relief from the burden of the financial debt, this lead to a significant increase in the percentage of people seeking medical aid each year. Immunisation programmes protected infants from disease such as polio and measles, this lead a vast drop in infant mortality rate, children were now protected from diseases that had wiped out generations before them. This is a major achievement for any government and as paved the way for a better quality of life for many.

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 However, the NHS had many problems during its creation, the doctors and members of the British Medical Association had reservations about the new legislation. They feared that they would have their freedom removed from them and feared a major decrease in their annual salary. It took a great deal of talks between the BMA and the minister of healthcare Aneurin Bevan to come to a compromise. Bevan allowed doctors to continue with their own private practices whilst allocating private wards in hospitals their exclusive patients. This is seen as a criticism of the Labour party, they had the chance to ...

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