Social Policy & Family Flashcards
1967 Abortion Act
Legalised abortion in UK and made it available through NHS
1967 Sexual Offences Act
Partially decriminalised male homosexuality in England and Wales - age of consent set at 21
1969 Divorce Reform Act
- Reduced previously high cost of divorce
- Made legal process of getting a divorce much more simple through the ‘irretrievable breakdown’ clause
1970 Equal Pay Act
Made it illegal for employers to pay women less than men employed in the same jobs - ‘encouraged’ women, expecially mothers, to enter workforce in large numbers
1975 Sex Discrimination Act
Outlawed discrimination against women by employers in the workplace
Availability of the Contraceptive pill - 1961
First available on the NHS to married women in 1961
Thatcherite/New Right policies (1979-1997)
Children Act 1989
- Clearly outlined rights of children, safeguarded them from harm
- Major emphasis on role of family, less on local services
Thatcherite/New Right policies (1979-1997)
Child Support Agency 1993
- Ensured absent fathers paid maintenance for upbringing of children - included chasing down fathers where there was no contact
- Where possible, money to support lone parent families came from absent parents, not the government
Thatcherite/New Right policies (1979-1997)
Section 28 1988
- Prevented local government from ‘promoting’ homosexuality
- Schools could not teach ‘the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship’
- Govt. went beyond promoting NF to attacking and denying an alternative family structure
Thatcherite/New Right policies (1979-1997)
Proposed changes to divorce rules
- Wanted to make divorce more difficult
- Moral panic in 80s that too many British marriages were divorcing
- Plan was enforced ‘cooling off’ period of a year between separation and divorce
- Never put into practice due to opposition and impracticality
Socially liberal policies under New Labour (1997-2010)
Child Tax Credit Policy
- Depending on amount of children you had, the amount of tax paid was reduced slightly
- Paid to main carer of child - usually mother
- Morgan (2007) - undermined both marriage and traditional family because it was biased towards single parents, dual career families, and gay people
Socially liberal policies under New Labour (1997-2010)
Paid Paternity Leave 2003
Men able to get 2 weeks of paid parental leave
Socially liberal policies under New Labour (1997-2010)
Adoption and Children’s Act 2002
- Allowed same sex couples to adopt
- Allowed unmarried heterosexual couples and single people to adopt too
- Other advances in gay rights: equal age of consent in 2001, repeal of Section 28 in 2003
Socially liberal policies under New Labour (1997-2010)
Civil Partnership Act 2005
Allowed same sex relationships to be legally recognised on the same terms as marriage - effectively marriage in all but name
Socially conservative policies of modern Conservative Party
Removed ‘Couples’ penalty’
Done so that benefits system did not include perverse incentive for couples to break up in order to receive more benefits
Socially conservative policies of modern Conservative Party
Troubled Families Programme (TFP)
- After 2011 London riots, many Tories were worried about broken families and the quality of family life
- 2012 - Coalition introduced TFP which identified 120K households involved in crime, anti-social behaviour, truancy, long-term unemployment as a high cost to the state
- Programme was meant to be used to get them back into work or education
Socially conservative policies of modern Conservative Party
The proposed Dementia Tax
- Would have forced elderly people with assets (money and housing) worth over £100K to pay for any social care they received as they got older
- Previously, unless you had more than £23K in your bank, you would be entitled to free social care from your council
Socially conservative policies of modern Conservative Party
Child Tax Credits restricted to 2 children
- Child tax credits only available for 2 children and equivalent for those on universal credit
- Some have suggested this is designed to change behaviour and discourage those on low incomes from having too many kids - clearly also a cost saving measure
Socially conservative policies of modern Conservative Party
Free School Meals
- During the Covid 19 pandemic, govt. didn’t initially want to fund extra money needed for FSM over summer and winter holidays
- Wouldn’t normally happen, but during COVID, many saw it as obvious that the children of parents who earned less money should be fed
- Govt. eventually went back on this policy and gave in - Marcus Rashford and the unpopularity of this policy
Socially liberal policies of the modern Conservative Party
Equal Marriage Act (2013/14)
- 9 years after civil partnership act, coalition brought in same-sex marriage
- Clear support from both parties in the coalition, but opposition from traditionalists on tory backbenches and in religious organisations
Socially liberal policies of the modern Conservative Party
Shared Parental Leave
- Both parties in coalition keen for parental leave to be share equally between men and women
- Men no longer given only two weeks where women got an extended period
Socially liberal policies of the modern Conservative Party
Married Couples’ Tax Allowance
- Tax allowance for married couples with only one taxpayer
- May look like a return to traditionalist support of NF but supports all married couples and civil partnerships
- Doesn’t matter which member of the family is the breadwinner
