To what extent have the principles of the welfare state been eroded since 1979

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Kieran Clarke                17.11.05                

To what extent have the principles of the welfare state been eroded since 1979?

        In this essay I will attempt to examine if and by how much the welfare state has been eroded since 1979. Due to length limitations I will have to oversimplify topics covered. However I will explore issues in a coherent frame work to scrutinize the continuity of the ‘classic welfare state, (Powell 1998).

        

        Many political theorists have debated the birth of the welfare state. Poor Law which can be dated back to the 14th century (Labourers Act) maybe considered the first step in a long journey to become what we recognise as the welfare state today (Midwinter1994, Jones 2000). However others classify the beginning of the Classic welfare state by the report written by William Beverage (1942) which identified ‘five giants’ of social disorder; want, idleness, squalor, disease and ignorance. The main focus of the solution was flat-rate contributions as well as flat-rate cash benefits, (Titmuss 1950; Hennessy 1992; Powell 1998).

        Drawing from these two points of view the foundation of the classic welfare state I will take the latter (Five Giants) as most credible, as most of the major features of the welfare state were initiated by the Labour and Conservative governments (Labour’s landslide victory of the conservations after World War two) from this point, such as the planned, approved and implemented universal non-selective NHS 1948.  

        As we now have a beginning context we must explore when the erosion of the classic welfare state began. Commentators have used very selective wording when dealing with the transition from classic to modern welfare state (Powell 1998; Timmins1996). The word ‘retrenched’ is cautiously used and many have seen the de/evolution of the welfare state as a result of crisis, particularly where finance is concerned. The Harold Wilson Labour government (1974-9) was plagued by recession. The ‘Winter of Discontent’ (mid 1970’s) saw a progressive problem for both welfare expenditure and the Labour government. The solution to the crisis derived from Keynesianism ideology was to keep unemployment low by creating jobs through public spending. This notion of ‘stop go’ had worked for previous governments but funds were limited and loans from the IMF were necessary, this is not an unusual practice for the government (to take out loans) but regulations of the IMF meant public spending had to be cut.

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        Some writers mark this as the beginning of ‘retrenchment, restructured or erosion’ of the welfare state, at the 1976 Labour conference, Prime minister Callaghan’s speech was seen as a formal break with Keynesianism. Consensus of welfare policy and Keynesianism were so interlinked one would not stand up without another, therefore it meant an end to the ‘Classic welfare State’ (Loney 1986; Wicks 1978 Leonard 1979).

        

        So the question still begs answering, what were the principles of the welfare state, and how have they been eroded? The main ideals of the Beveridge report was flat rate contributions and in ...

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