Book 3: Part 1 Liberal Reforms

Question 1

What were living conditions like before the liberal reforms?

Answer 1

Cramped and unsanitary and disease ridden

one third of the population lived in poverty in the 1800s

Question 2

What were attitudes to the poor like before the liberal reforms?

Answer 2

Poor were blamed for being in the situation they were in
They were generalised as people who would smoke and drink their money away
If the poor wished to be out of poverty, the rich believed they could

Question 3

What was done to help the poor before the liberal reforms?

Answer 3

-charities were helping the poor.
By 1900, 22,000 charities were set up
This shows people were helping the poor rather than the government

-social reformers helped the poor
Charles Booth published 70 books and found that 30% of the population lived below the poverty line
-people took him seriously as he was a well respected business man
-this helped changed attitudes to the poor so the poor would receive more help

Question 4

What did Seebohm Rowntree do?

Answer 4

He divided the poverty in York into primary poverty (10%) and secondary poverty (17%)

He identified the causes of poverty
Large family (52%)
Low wages (22%)
Death of wage earner (10%)
Illness and old age wage earner (5%)
Unemployment (10%)
Other (6%)

This shocked the middle and upper class and changed views on the poor, this prompted people to take action to help the poor

Question 5

What did John Galt do?

Answer 5

Put on lantern shows to the middle class 
He showed images of the poor to show they weren't lazy and their jobs resulted in early death
This helped change the attitudes of the poor from the middle class. This prompted them to help the poor.

Question 6

What did Charles Booth do?

Answer 6

Collected masses of information over 19 years and published 70 books. 
He found that 30% of London lived below the poverty line.
He was taken seriously as he was a respected businessman. This prompted change as it changed people's negative view of the poor and prompted the middle class and upper class to help

Question 7

What were the 6 main causes of the liberal reforms?

Answer 7

Social reformers
Increasing information about poverty
National efficiency 
Key individuals 
Political rivalry

Question 8

How did social reformers prompt the introduction of the liberal reforms?

Answer 8

Prompted the idea of “new liberalism”
This meant it was seen as morally wrong that supreme poverty should be allowed to exist alongside incredible wealth

Rowntree’s work had a powerful impact. Social reformers changed people’s views on the poor with their statistics and campaigning. This put pressure on the government to make positive changes

Question 9

How did increasing information about poverty prompt the liberal reforms?

Answer 9

The Salvation Army sent new information to the government.
The governments own civil servants collected information about poverty
This put pressure on the government to help

Question 10

What was employment like before the liberal reforms?

Answer 10

Unregulated industry

Dock workers- commonly got work 3 days a week
Had to search for work every day and wait by the docks

Gas workers

• shovel coal
• struggle to find work past 40

Question 11

How did the scale of the problem/unequal distribution of wealth prompt the Liberal Reforms?

Answer 11

Life expectancy for the poot was 45.

The top 10% of the population owned 92% of the wealth

Question 12

How did national efficiency prompt the liberal reforms? -3 things

Answer 12

• the government had to reduce its minimum height to find enough soldiers
• in some poor areas of Britain, 69% of volunteers to fight in South Africa wee deemed unfit to fight as they had not grown properly
• by 1900, USA and Germany had overtake Britain as the biggest industrial power

Question 13

How did key individuals prompt the introduction of the liberal reforms -2 people

Answer 13

David Lloyd George was a prominent member of the liberal party who rose to Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1908.
He sympathised with the poor as he was raised in poverty.

Winston Churchill switched to liberals in 1906 when the reforms started.

Question 14

How did political rivalry prompt the liberal reforms?

Answer 14

Conservatives had introduced reforms and Liberals were worried middle class would vote for them.

Most working class men could vote by 1906, liberals feared they would vote for labour

Question 15

When was labour formed?

Answer 15

1900

Question 16

What reforms did the conservatives introduce?

Answer 16

Unemployed workmens act

Question 17

What was the people’s budget? 4 mark

Answer 17

Lloyd George -chancellor of the exchequer had to raise money for his reforms.
He thought the rich had inherited wealth so should pay for the reforms.
He planned to tax the rich.
The House of Lords opposed the budget but when the liberals won the 1910 election they agreed

Question 18

Which reforms benefitted workers?

Answer 18

National insurance act 1911

National insurance act 1912

Question 19

Which reforms benefitted the elderly?

Answer 19

Pensions act 1908

Question 20

Which reforms benefitted children?

Answer 20

Free school meals 1906
School medical inspections 1907
Children’s act 1908

Question 21

Which reforms benefitted the unemployed?

Answer 21

Labour exchange act 1909

Question 22

What was life like for workers before the reforms?

Answer 22

If they were sick they would get no money for time off.
They were reliant on charity
They earned the equivalent of £10 for an 18 hour day in modern society

Question 23

What was the national insurance act?

Answer 23

1911
Aimed to prevent poverty through illness
They paid 4 pence per week.
Employer added 3 pence
Government added 2
Workers in the scheme were entitled to free medical care
10 million men and 4 million women were insured

Question 24

WHat was the national insurance act part 2?

Answer 24

1912
Aimed to prevent poverty when people fell out of workers
Open to people in unsteady trades like shipbuilding.
If a worker was unemployed, they could claim 7s 6d a week for up to 15 weeks per year.
It helped around 2.25 million people

Question 25

How did the national insurance acts not benefit people?

Answer 25

It only covered people on low income.
There was not enough to support a working man and his family if the man was unemployed
This was deliberate so people would want to work

Question 26

What was life like for the elderly before the reforms?

Answer 26

There is no system in place to help

They rely on charities and the workhouse

Question 27

What was the pensions act?

Answer 27

1908
People over 70 could get 5 shillings a week
Unless you earned over £31
Married couples got 7 shillings 6 pence
In the first year 650,000 people got pensions
People claiming outdoor relief fell by over 80,000

Question 28

How did the pensions act not help people?

Answer 28

It only helped around half a million elderly

Question 29

What was life like for children before the liberal reforms?

Answer 29

There is no real system to help them.

Orphans are looked after in workhouses

Question 30

What was the free school meals act?

Answer 30

1906
Local councils were given the power to provide free school meals for the poorest families
By 1914, over 158,000 children were having free school meals once a day
Almost 14 million free school meals were served in 1914

Question 31

How did the free school meals act not help people?

Answer 31

Only about half of Britain’s local authorities set up a meals service

Question 32

What was the school medical inspections act?

Answer 32

1907
It was compulsory
Doctors and nurses would go into schools and give medical checks and recommend treatment

Question 33

How did the school medical inspections act not help people?

Answer 33

It was free

But until 1912, parents had to pay for any treatment

Question 34

What was the children’s act?

Answer 34

1908
Insurance companies paid out money to parents if their child died in mysterious circumstances.
Parents could be prosecuted for cruelty to children
Children under 14 could not be sent to adult jails. They were sent to “borstal”
Children under 14 could not go into pubs
Children under 16 could not buy cigarettes

Question 35

What was life like for the unemployed before the reforms?

Answer 35

They can get outdoor relief

Not all work is regulated

Question 36

What was the labour exchanges act

Answer 36

1909
Unemployed workers could go to a labour exchange to find work
They signed onto a register
By 1913, exchanges were putting 3000 people into jobs every working day

Question 37

How did labour exchanges not help people?

Answer 37

Labour exchanges didn’t create full employment

Question 38

What did the liberals do to the House of Lords to pass the reforms?

Answer 38

They cut their power

Question 39

What were the reactions to the reforms from the rich?

Answer 39

Hated it as taxes were raised to help pay

Question 40

What was the reaction to the reforms from the conservatives?

Answer 40

They didn’t want the rich to pay for the reforms. Thought they went too far as they taxed the rich

Question 41

Was was the reaction to the reforms from the Labour Party?

Answer 41

They thought they didn’t go far enough.

Question 42

What was the reaction from employers on the reforms?

Answer 42

They had to pay 3 pence a week (act 1) and 2 pence (act 2)

They weren’t happy they had to pay

Question 43

What was the reaction from the elderly and the workers on the reforms?

Answer 43

Happy as they got free medical care and pensions!

-however pensions had limits but it was non contributary :)