General Depression Flashcards
What did Oswald Moseley pressure the government to do in the early depression?
Increase government spending to create jobs and put high tariffs on foreign goods to protect British industry.
Describe the means test.
It was a test overseen by the public assistance committee to investigate a family’s funds before the dole could be given.
It was set up in 1931 and many family’s were offended by its insensitive manner.
What where the reasons for economic decline before 1929
Decline in post war boom in 1921.
Disaster of general strike in 1926
Increased competition from abroad
Decline in cotton and steel industry
How did the slump in England and Wales turn into a depression?
It affected both employers and employees, because of lack of demand employers had to lay off workers. As unemployment rose, orders fell even more sharply.
What were the causes of the decline in traditional industries?
Rising production costs due to obsolete methods, causing increased competition abroad
What were the psychological effects of the depression and unemployment?
> unemployment led to a loss of dignity and a feeling of hopelessness
> unemployed men felt guilty about not being the breadwinner and this lead to a loss of self-respect and self-esteem
What was the effect of the depression on health?
> poor diet and poverty lead to high infant mortality rate and poor health in children
> overcrowding meant disease spread more quickly
> Newcastle study showed in 1933 1/3 of schoolchildren were unfit.
> rich and poor divide
- 10x more likely to catch Bronchitis
- 8x more likely to catch pneumonia
- 5x more likely to have rickets
Describe migration during the depression.
> 1000s of people left the NE England and S Wales in search of work
> MINISTRY OF LABOUR set up a scheme to help the Welsh unemployed move to the more prosperous areas of Coventry,London and Oxford
> between 1921-1939 the population of Gateshead fell by 20%
> 430,000 left England and Wales all together
Describe the development of cheap electricity.
> the light industries needed a new source of power
- 1926 the central electricity board was set up to supply homes and industry
> 1933 national grid was set up
- 1920-38 number of those supplied with electricity rose from 730,000 to 9 million
