British Depth: Liberal Reforms Flashcards
Who are three different social reformers?
Seebohm Rowntree, William/Catherine Booth, Charles Booth
What book did Charles Booth write?
The Life and Labour of the people of London
What organisation was set up by William/Catherine Booth and when?
The salvation army (1865)
What was the attitude of the government at the time towards poverty?
Laissez-faire; the government shouldn’t involve itself in people’s lives- people should stop being lazy and help themselves
What % (recorded by Charles Booth) were in poverty and unable to help themselves?
85% of the poor population (contrary to what Victorians at the time believed)
What was the life expectancy for poor men and women?
45
How was the wealth shared (previous to liberal reforms)?
The top 10% of the population owned 92% of the country’s wealth
Who won the 1906 elections?
The liberal party
When was the labour party formed?
1900
What proportion of recruits in the Boer war were unfit for service (mainly due to poverty)?
1/3
Who were two key ‘new liberals’ in the government in the introduction of welfare reforms?
Winston Churchill and David Lloyd George
When was the free school meals act introduced?
1906
What act was introduced in 1907?
School medical inspections
When was the children’s act introduced?
1908
What act was passed in 1909?
The Labour exchange act
When was the pensions act introduced?
1908
What act was passed in 1911?
The national insurance act part 1
When was the second half of the national insurance act passed?
1912
When was the school clinics act passed?
1912
What did the pensions act provide?
Weekly pensions: 5 s(single) or 7 s 6(couple)
How many were actually helped by the pensions act?
Only 500,000 qualified; you needed to be 70+ yrs, income less than £21/year, British citizen (or lived in Britain 20+ yrs) and not been in prison in last 10 yrs
What limited the free school meals act?
It only applied to the very poorest children (158,000 in receipt by 1914) and only 1/2 Britain’s councils actually did it
What did the national insurance act part 1 provide?
Workers could insure themselves against sickness & withdraw money; they could take out 10 s/week for 13 weeks, them 5 s/week for another 13 weeks, in 1 year
Who funded the national insurance (pt 1)?
Workers (4 d), employers (3 d) and government (2 d)
What limitations did the national insurance (1) act have?
Insurance was only for those who contributed to the fund- not their dependants, and only for those on low income (£160/year)
What did the national insurance act (pt 2) do?
Workers could insure themselves against unemployment and withdraw 7 s 6 d/week for up to 15 weeks if out of work
How was the national insurance act (pt 2) funded?
Workers (2 d), employers (2 d), government (2 d)
What limitations did the national insurance act (2) have?
Insurance against unemployment was only for workers in certain trades where employment was seasonal (building/shipbuilding/engineering)
What was the limitation of the school medical inspections act?
Treatments were recommended but were often too expensive as they were not paid for (this was solved by the free school clinics), and quality of checkups varied
Where else did the money for the liberal reforms come from?
Higher taxes on the rich/land-owners (which was in Lloyd George’s 1909 budget)
Which city did Seebohm Rowntree investigate?
York
What model of poverty did William/Catherine Booth create?
The poverty circle
