Labour Reforms Flashcards
What was the life expectancy for men and women in 1931?
- 59 for men
- 63 for women
What was the life expectancy for men and women in 1951?
- 66 for men
- 72 for women
How many people were unemployed due to the Great Depression?
Over 2.5 million
Why was the Great Depression relevant to the Beveridge Report?
- People believed post-war had to be better than pre-war
- Lead to people wanting change + made the Beveridge Report more popular
Who produced the Beveridge Report + when?
- William Beveridge
- 1942
What battle was won and why was it significant to the Beveridge Report?
A battle in North Africa that gave people hope of the war ending
What did the benefits from the National Insurance consist of? State both couples and single adults.
- 26 shillings for single adults
- 42 shillings for couples
Why was the National Insurance Act beneficial?
Gave people more financial security and peace of mind
How many houses did Labour intend to build per year?
200,000 per year
Did Labour hit their target + when?
Yes, after a couple of years of the scheme they were able to build over 200,000 per year built
What kind of benefits were there in the National Assurance scheme?
- Sickness + unemployment benefits
- Orphan + widow benefits
- Death grants
What was the benefit of new grants in the National Assurance scheme?
- These people were never helped before
- Better of quality of life
- Wider range of needs met
What were the ages for male + female pensions lowered to?
- 60 for women
- 65 for men
Why was the lowered age for pensions beneficial? Why was this still not enough?
- Allowed more people to access it before death as the new age was closer to life expectancy + end of working life
- Still not enough money to live on
Who was the first person/family to squat in an army branch + when?
- James Fielding’s family
- 20 other families
- May 1946
How did the local councils react?
- Some received funding from local councils and National Exchequer
- Local councils hooked army branches up to gas + electricity
What was a drawback of the NHS?
Costed a lot while Britain was recovering from war debt + Great Depression
How much was the budget for the NHS in 1914?
£134 million
How much was the budget for the NHS in 1949?
£288 million`
How much was the budget for the NHS in 1950?
£356 million
What was one of the things the government did to help businesses after WWII?
Kept interest rates down
How did the actions of the government to support businesses help?
- Encouraged pre-existing businesses to expand
- Encouraged creation of new businesses
- Made more jobs
- Encouraged people to invest
What did each house built by Labour have with it?
- Separate kitchen
- Indoor bathroom
- Gas
- Electricity
What were the 2 benefits of government houses being built?
- Started to help with the housing problem, gave homes to people who lost them during WWII
- Gave lower classes better homes
- Made cities less crowded
Why were the aims of the NHS good for the population?
Allowed the health of the nation as a whole to improve as everyone had access for free
How many spectacles were given out for free during the first year of the NHS?
5 million pairs
How did the NHS improve on the old National Insurance Act?
- Only tuberculosis was treated in hospitals before
- Now all healthcare was free
What was the benefit of giving out dental + optical care?
- Small amenities people weren’t able to afford before
- Better quality of life
What were 3 industries Labour nationalised?
- Railways
- Steel
- Coal
- Iron
- Telecoms
- Airways
What percentage of industries were nationalised?
20%
Why was nationalising businesses positive?
- Prevented businesses from shutting down as they weren’t working for profit
- Allowed for more jobs
Why could Labour not be purely attributed for low employments rates?
- High global demand
- The Marshall Plan (economic recovery plan from US)
What were two facts that proved housing did not go far enough?
- 750,000 people were still homeless
- Long waiting lists for housing
- People squatting in army barracks due to lack of housing
How did Labour react to the squatters in army barracks?
Hooked them up to water + electricity
When was the NHS created and what were its aims?
- 5th July 1948
- Free healthcare
- Comprehensive
- Available for everyone
How many dental patients were there after the NHS started?
8.5 million
In which period of time did the Labour Reforms occur?
1930s - 1950s
