reasons for liberal reforms essay - rise of labour Flashcards
introduction
At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Britain was arguably the most
powerful, wealthiest nation on earth. Despite this, poverty was widespread.
Slum housing was found in cities and disease killed thousands. There was limited
help for those in poverty and many would rather have suffered than face the
misery of the poor house. However, the laissez faire attitude of the government
did change and a series of reforms were introduced by the Liberals between
1906-14. Some suggest this was due to the rise of Labour and believe the
Liberals passed reforms to keep working class votes. However, although this
was quite an important issue the findings of Booth and Rowntree were the most
important reason for the reforms. This essay will examine these issues as well
as concerns over national security and national efficiency.
2nd paragraph
The rise of Labour was quite important as a reason why the Liberals passed
their reforms. The Labour Representation Committee formed in 1900 and this
became the Labour Party in 1906. The establishment of a party that
represented working class interests could have been a reason why the Liberals
passed reforms because they worried about maintaining the support of the
working classes. If they introduced policies to help them, the poor would vote
for the Liberals instead of Labour. During Labour Party campaigns, they
promised ‘help for the unemployed, healthy homes and fair rents’. These ideas
would have appealed to working class voters and so the Liberals might have felt
they had to introduce reforms aimed at these groups to keep their support.
However, it could be argued that this was not a driving concern. In the 1905
election, little was said about helping the poor and New Liberalism was not
guiding Liberal policy at this point. This would suggest that other reasons than
the rise of Labour need to be examined to understand why they introduced
reforms. In evaluation, the rise of Labour was quite important for the
introduction of reforms as the introduction of a party which represented
working class interests may have worried Liberal politicians. However, the hard
facts presented by Booth and Rowntree were more important in the Liberals
passing social reforms. As Peter Murray states ‘New Liberalism was given a
powerful impetus by the revelations of Booth and Rowntree’.
3rd paragraph
The most important reason for the Liberal reforms were the investigations
carried out by Booth and Rowntree. Charles Booth carried out his surveys in
14
London where he discovered 35% of the population were living in poverty. In
addition, his recommendations clearly stated that the government had to act or
would face a backlash from the working class. This was a reason why the
Liberals introduced reforms as his findings were concerning and the Liberals
felt they had to act to improve living conditions or there could potentially be
social unrest. Seebohm Rowntree carried out his surveys in York and found
similar levels of poverty there as about 30% of people were suffering. This was
a reason why reforms were introduced as it proved that poverty was a national
issue and not just confined to large cities like London. Government intervention
was needed to resolve some of these problems. In evaluation, the reports of
Booth and Rowntree were the most important factor in the Liberals passing
social reforms as their reports were available to all politicians and were
summarised in newspapers for the public to read. This resulted in their social
investigations having a greater impact upon a greater number of people across
the UK, encouraging the British people to see reform as a necessity to improve
the health and wellbeing of the nation.
4th paragraph
Concerns over national security also influenced the government to pass reforms.
Between 1899 and 1902 Britain was engaged in the Boer war in South Africa.
When volunteers were recruited for the army, around 25% had to be rejected,
as they were unfit or service. This was a reason for the reforms as politicians
began to worry whether they could hold onto their Empire if its young men were
not fit enough to fight and defend it, reforms were needed to improve health.
In 1904, committees were established across the country to look into ill health.
These reports found many adults were in poor health and recommended that
school meals and medical inspections in school were a way to solve this problem.
As these points did eventually become law it is clear that this evidence was a
driving reason why the government introduced their reforms – the security of
the nation was at stake. However, this argument could be limited as some of the
reforms that were introduced were for elderly people who would not be fighting
in conflicts, this means there must have been other concerns when introducing
their reforms. In evaluation, national security was quite important for the
introduction of reforms as the government worried about Britain’s position in
the world. However, Booth and Rowntree were more important because the
statistics from the Boer war only focused on young men from across parts of
the country, whereas Booth and Rowntree focused on the whole family and
highlighted the poverty of mothers, fathers and their children and dependents
such as grandparents and the problems they endured. These statistics were
more shocking for the government.
conclusion
In conclusion, the rise of Labour was quite important for the passing of the
Liberal Reforms from 1906-14 however the surveys of Booth and Rowntree were
more important. Labour was important to an extent as the threat of losing
potential voters might have influenced the government to act however their
1905 manifesto did not mention much of social reform. Concerns over national
efficiency was a driving factor because Britain was worried about her Empire
but it could not have been solely for this reason as pensions were also
introduced. Overall the surveys of Booth and Rowntree were the most important
reason for the reforms. These in-depth studies provided a wealth of statistical
information which changed the minds of many politicians. This was the main
reason the reforms were introduced
