Examine the extent to which the aims of the Beveridge report of 1942 had been achieved by 1951.
Examine the extent to which the aims of the Beveridge report of 1942 had been achieved by 1951.In 1945 the Atlee Labour party came to power, as they had the policies and beliefs, which the British public saw, applicable to them. Labour was the socialist party and wanted to look after the poor and needy, whilst helping the British public socially and economically. Labour wanted equality, state planning and wanted to spend money on the British public. The Labour Party planned on doing everything in the Beveridge report, which is what I will reach a conclusion to as whether the aims of the Beveridge report were reached by 1951. The Beveridge report was published in December 1942, it created a phenomenal sensation. No government publication has ever aroused such interest. The report shifted a massive 635,000 copies. Everyone was interested in what Beveridge had to say as it could help them. Beveridge was interested in social issues, especially unemployment and poverty. William Beveridge was a Liberal. No one had anticipated Beveridge to write the report as quickly as he did. Beveridge decided it was time for fundamental changes in British Society. Thus he printed his report expressing his ideas for Fundamental changes to be made. Before the Beveridge report there were several patchworks of provision. Social welfare before Beveridge was mildly successful. The acts already in place before the Beveridge report were; 1908 – Old Age Pensions Act, which stated that people aged 70 and Over were eligible for a small pension – this wasn’t universal as it was
biased to what income you received. 1911 – National Health Insurance Act provided compulsory health insurance for all workers aged 16-70. 1920-21 – Unemployment Insurance Acts, the acts were to cover workers earning £250 and less per year. 1925 – Old age Pensions Act increased the contributions given by national insurance to bridge gap for the retiring age of 70. These were the main changes introduced between the wars. This shows that the government were taking a greater responsibility for social welfare. By 1939 19.2 million (about 54% of adults) could claim health insurance as the earning point was extended ...
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biased to what income you received. 1911 – National Health Insurance Act provided compulsory health insurance for all workers aged 16-70. 1920-21 – Unemployment Insurance Acts, the acts were to cover workers earning £250 and less per year. 1925 – Old age Pensions Act increased the contributions given by national insurance to bridge gap for the retiring age of 70. These were the main changes introduced between the wars. This shows that the government were taking a greater responsibility for social welfare. By 1939 19.2 million (about 54% of adults) could claim health insurance as the earning point was extended to £250 per year. These measures were neither universal nor comprehensive, as they didn’t cover everyone for everything. There were still glaring problems to such measures listed above; Poverty still remained, the system was anything but comprehensive, Benefits were often means-tested and the whole system was complex and confusing. There were still drastic changes needed.The war made the reform of the system necessary. It was the people’s war and the government had promised a ‘Land fit for heroes’, which they were receiving anything but, things were still generally the same as before the war. The government introduced free milk for all school children in 1940, with the government abolishing the household means test in 1941. The old system merely couldn’t cope with the demands the public needed. The government then instituted the Emergency Hospital Service, which is where hospitals would lay aside beds for war patients to be paid for by the treasury, this was the government’s effort to temporarily nationalising Britain. People realised something had to happen to extend the patchwork of social provisions, Beveridge was the man chosen to do so. The Beveridge reports main aim was to demolish the ‘Five Giants’; Want, Disease, Ignorance, Squalor and Idleness. His scheme rested on three assumptions; that a NHS would be set up to ensure adequate health care, family/ child allowances would be paid to all parents and that there would be full employment with as little as 3% unemployment. With Beveridge wanting to eliminate poverty he saw it best done by an insurance scheme were every worker would make flat rate contributions, with an ability to claim a uniform rate of benefit. This was similar to the insurance schemes already in place, but Beveridge planned on exceeding the scheme. With insurance contributions there would be one standard weekly payment. Furthermore, Beveridge’s scheme would not be selective, but universal. He wanted everyone to be at liberty to take out private insurance as an addition to the state scheme. With such plans, elimination of the means test would take place, as benefits were now entitlements. With all of the above hopefully working Beveridge aimed on mass unemployment removed with Want also abolished. Beveridge believed benefits should be at a substantial level to cover people’s basic needs. As a possible result of the Beveridge report, Labour introduced acts, which were suggested by the report. Labour came into power in 1945 with a great public following. Labour wanted to reform Britain’s welfare institutions. The core of this was to introduce several acts, these consisted of; National Health Service Act of 1946, the National Insurance Act of 1946, the National Insurance (Industrial Injuries) Act of 1946, and the National Assistance Act of 1948. Another Act also introduced by Labour was the Family Allowances Act of 1945. These Acts were the begging of the reformation of the Welfare state. At the time Labour came to power, plans for the National Insurance were further advanced than those for the National Health Service. The new insurance proposals were specifically the outcome of the Beveridge plan, the outline for unification. The first plan as already stated was that there would be a weekly pay into the insurance scheme. A second plan for insurance was for providing compulsory insurance against disablement as a result of industrial accident. This was the National Insurance (Industrial Injuries) Act, which was provided for a state-run insurance fund, which had been the rule in Great Britain since the turn of the century. The National Assistance Act of 1948 finally suspended the ancient Poor Law. With public assistance the national government took from the local authorities the ultimate responsibility for care of the poor. National Assistance was now ‘Supplementary Benefit’ and has had to supplement payments under National Insurance, particularly old age pensions, where the amount due the recipient is too small to live on. Bevan took upon himself the sole responsibility for the creation of the new health service. The NHS Bill nationalized all British hospitals municipal and voluntary forbidding the sale of medical practices. Only through large infusions of government money could hospital facilities be made adequate to provide modern medical service. However, Conservatives seriously resisted the nationalization of hospitals. The government eventually compensated doctors for the lost value of their patients’ good will to the extent of £60 million. The NHS finally came into effect in 1948. By this time Clement Atlee’s productive stage was over. Beveridge’s report did help, although, Beveridge didn’t write a blueprint for the report, it was ideas to conquer the ills of society. Thus, the Beveridge report was ideas not practicality. Labour did on the other hand introduce Acts, which were suggested by Beveridge to help reform the welfare state. Consequently, the distribution of wealth, showed relatively little change between 1945 and 1951. In 1946 ‘houses of the villa type’ were being built in the Development Areas, to cater for managers, skilled workers, and scientists, which defeats the object of the Beveridge report to improve housing for a universal and comprehensive change. It is claimed that Bevan was persuaded to agree. Additionally, class divisions continued to pursue as the private sector in key areas of the social services remained forceful – public schools, private insurance schemes, private medical and specialist services. In addition, it was notorious that more affluent or middle-class people received substantial help from universal welfare benefits. Especially with free health service, free secondary-school places and food subsidies. This enabled the gap between them and manual workers to grow even wider. This led Britain’s welfare democracy into a more classless society. I thus believe that Labour didn’t do everything within their power to fulfil everything which Beveridge stated; however, they did make a great change which led to such success nowadays.