2.1

Question 1

what time period did unemployment never fall below 1 mil?

Answer 1

end of 1920 + mid 1940

Question 2

when did unemployment peak at over 3 mil?

Answer 2

early 1930s

Question 3

who was the ‘out-of-work donation’ (1918-20) issued to?

Answer 3

returning troops + civilian unemployed until they found work

Question 4

what 2 important precedents did the ‘out of work donation’ (1918-20) set?

Answer 4

• gov accepted a duty to adequately support unemployed (regardless of insurance contributions)
• it provide more money for family dependants

Question 5

why was the Unemployment Insurance Act (1920) limited?

Answer 5

• Act was passed after effects of post-war slump began
• rather than creating a self-funding scheme, the greater no. of eligible claimants quickly drained the accumulated funds

Question 6

by March 1930, how many claimants had been rejected because of the ‘seeking work test’ (created in March 1921 by the Unemployment Insurance Act of 1920)?

Answer 6

3 mil

Question 7

when was the Local Gov Act + what did it do?

Answer 7

1929
- councils had to set up PACs (Public Assistance Committees)
- PACs were centrally funded + replaced Poor Law Guardians

Question 8

what were PACs able to do in 1931 due to a financial crisis?

Answer 8

PACs were able to means-test claimants

Question 9

how many people suffered rejected/reduced claims because of the means-test by the end of 1931 (due to Local Gov Act of 1929)?

Answer 9

400,000

Question 10

what did the Unemployment Act (1934) do?

Answer 10

• provided 26 weeks of benefit payments to 14.5 mil workers
• created a National Unemployment Assistance Board (UAB) - which assisted 1 mil by 1937 on a means-tested basis

Question 11

when were state pensions first introduced?

Answer 11

Pensions Act 1908

Question 12

why did the Pensions Act (1908) face criticism?

Answer 12

• means-tested
• didn’t support widows + children of deceased

Question 13

when was the Widows’, Orphans’ + Old Age Contributory Pensions Act passed + what did it do?

Answer 13

1925
- pension of 10 shillings/week for 65-70
- provided for widows + orphans
- funded by compulsory contribution (insurance>tax)

Question 14

when was the Housing + Town Planning Act introduced?

Answer 14

1919

Question 15

what did the Housing + Town Planning Act aim to do?

Answer 15

to empower local authorities to use central gov funds to meet housing needs

Question 16

why was the Housing + Town Planning Act limited?

Answer 16

• only 213k/600k homes built
• bc of Geddes Axe -> 822k shortfall of houses in 1923

Question 17

how many houses were built in total between 1919-40?

Answer 17

4 mil

Question 18

why was there an important shift in attitude among politicians + the general public, 1939-64?

Answer 18

• ‘total war’ prompted ‘total solutions’ which became popular
• success of state-led war economy increased political + popular belief in the potential of state intervention
• war forced a coalition gov - there was a consensus

Question 19

when was the Beveridge Report published?

Answer 19

1942

Question 20

what recommendations were included in the Beveridge Report?

Answer 20

• state should tackle 5 giants of want, disease, ignorance, squalor + idleness
• provision of state welfare to be centralised, regulated + organised
• state welfare should be funded entirely by a compulsory single insurance payment

Question 21

why did Labour not fully implement the Beveridge Report?

Answer 21

they rejected his call for welfare payments to be met solely by universal insurance (as it would penalise the poor by taking a greater proportion of their earnings)

Question 22

how did Labour implement Beveridge’s key ideas?

Answer 22

• Family Allowance Act (1945)
• National Insurance Act (1946)
• Industrial Accidents Act (1948)
• National Assistance Act (1948)

Question 23

what did the Family Allowance Act (1945) do?

Answer 23

provided mums with a non-means tested payment of 5 shillings a week for each child (apart from 1st)
1st payment in Aug ‘46

Question 24

what did the National Insurance Act (1946) do?

Answer 24

created a compulsory universal contributory system to help pay for pensions + benefits for unemployment, sickness, funeral expenses + maternity benefits

Question 25

what did the Industrial Accidents Act (1948) do?

Answer 25

gave additional cover for workplace injuries

Question 26

what did the National Assistance Act (1948) do?

Answer 26

established NAB’s (National Assistance Boards) to provide financial help to the most vulnerable

Question 27

why were the NABs more popular than the UABs + how many more people were able to claim a higher rate of benefits after 1948?

Answer 27

• NABs used a less rigorous form of means-testing
• 250,000 more people

Question 28

what were the L + R wing criticisms on welfare provision by 1979?

Answer 28

L- not enough was being done
R- cost + impact of more generous benefits

Question 29

what was the cost of unemployment benefits in 1939, ‘50 and ‘70?

Answer 29

% of GNP:
‘39 = 0.6%
‘50 = 6%
‘70 = 9%

Question 30

what did the National Insurance Act (1959) do?

Answer 30

introduced a top-up scheme based on earnings (graduated pension)

Question 31

what did the Social Security Act (1975) do?

Answer 31

• set up state earnings-related pension scheme
• allowed workers to opt out of all/part of state pension in return for lower NI payments

Question 32

why did the level of costing for welfare increase?

Answer 32

BECCS
- more Education cost (bc of baby boomers)
- more Care for elderly (bc of increased life expectancy)
- new Social groups in need of support
- higher min. Standard of life for poorest
- more Bureaucracy

Question 33

why did Thatcher criticise an increase in benefit payments?

Answer 33

encourages a culture of dependency through a ‘poverty trap’

Question 34

why did Bevan + Wilson resign?

Answer 34

charges for spectacles + dentures in 1951 - went away key Labour beliefs