U2 - How effective were the Liberal Reforms 1906-14 Flashcards
Reforms for what groups
Y - Young O - Old U - Unemployment S - Sick E - Employed
Young Reforms
- School Meals
- School Medical Inspections
- The Children’s Charter
Young
Children - School Meals - Problem
- Introduction of compulsory education brought to light that children from slum areas were too hungry to learn
- Before 1906, it was illegal for Local Authority School Boards to provide free school meals
Young
Children - School Meals - Problem - Stats
- A report published in 1889 indicated that over 50,000 pupils in London alone were attending school “in want of food”
Young
Children - School Meals - Action
- First reform introduced after their success in the election was the Provision of School Meals Act in 1906
Young
Children - School Meals - Action - Provision of School Meals Act in 1906
- Allowed local authorities to provide school meals to needy children
- Only encourage local authorities to take measure as they saw fit i.e. not compulsory
- Gave local authorities powers to raise a halfpenny on the local tax, if necessary to feed needy school meals
Young
Children - School Meals - Negative
- Schools Meal Act was a rather cautious piece of legislation (not compulsory)
- Local authorities were slow to respond to the legislation ad by 1939 less than 50% were providing this service
Young
Children - School Meals - Negative (Quote)
- “Only a small measure and produced only limited progress” (Fraser)
Young
Children - School Meals - Positive
- Research in 1907 showed clear correlation between weight gain during school terms and weight lost during the school holidays - these children had school meals
- Also 1914 the government provided local authorities with grants of half the costs for providing school meals
Young
Children - School Meals - Positive (results)
- By 1914, 14 million school meals per year were being provided for 158,000 children
Young
Children - School Medical Inspections - Problem
- Introduced in order to reduce the outbreaks of disease which were common at this time
- Government report in 1908 found that 55% of children with medical problems had not been treated
Young
Children - School Medical Inspections - Problem - Diseases
- 80% had defective teeth
- 30% had lice or nits
- 9% had rickets due to inadequate nutrition
- 50% of recruits to Boer War (1899-1902) were unfit to serve
Young
Children - School Medical Inspections - Action
- In 1907, the Education Act made medical inspections for children compulsory
- This act specify that at least 3 inspections must take place during a child’s school years
Young
Children - School Medical Inspections - Negative
- No such measures introduced after school life
- They did not improve the health conditions of adults or school leavers
- Was seen as an act of cruelty towards children as they didn’t offer treatment/solutions
Young
Children - School Medical Inspections - Positive
- This step helped national health levels in children
- By 1914 most authorities were providing some medical treatment for children
Young
Children - The Children’s Charter - Problem
- Children were treated like adults e.g. prisons
Young
Children - The Children’s Charter - Action
- Banned children under the age of fourteen from public houses
- Children under 16 were forbidden to some or drink alcohol, or beg
- Borstals were set up to deal with children convicted of breaking the law, to keep away from adult criminals
- Children were tried in Juvenile Courts
- Probation officers were employed to guide young offenders when they were released from borstal
Young
Children - The Children’s Charter - Negative
- Begging had provided a good source of income for families
Younf
Children - The Children’s Charter - Positive
- Children were now being better treated
Old
Problem
- Booth had highlighted the extent of poverty associated with old age
- The elderly were by far the largest section of society who were poor
- Some areas of Britain nearly half of all old people were forced to end their lives in the workhouse due to poverty
Old
Action
- Everyone over the age of 70 as of right were entitled to old age pension
- Entitled people to 5 shillings per week (or less depending)
Old
Action - Requirements for Pension
- Over 70 years
- Were British (were no passport/birth certificates)*
- Lived in Britain for 20 years*
- Not been in prison for the last 10 years
- Not avoided work in the past*
- Not been detained for drunkenness in the last 10 years
- Hard to prove
Old
Positive
- No insurance contributions were necessary - was a right
- 75% decrease in old people having to enter the workhouse between 1906 and 1913
- Nearly 1 million elderly were apply for the pension in 1914 (double the 1908 figure)
- Most exemptions had been swept away by 1911
Old
Positive - Quote
- “It removed the dreaded threat of the workhouse” (Richard Shannon - The Crisis of Imperialism)
Old
Negative
- The pension fell below most existing poverty lines
- Only half a million elderly qualified in 1908
- Many people didn’t reach 70 years old
- Appeared to be designed to allow the least amount of pensions to be entitled
- Pressure from war against Germany - DLG didn’t know where to put money: War or Elderly
The Sick Worker
Problem
- Free National Health Service did not yet exist and the poor could not usually afford medical attention
- Many people could work due to ill health
The Sick Worker
Action
- Liberals passed the National Insurance Act 1911
- Compulsory insurance against sickness for earnings up to £160 p.a
- Employee paid 4d, employer 3d and state 2d
- 10s for 13 weeks, then 5s for another 13 in one year
The Sick Worker
Action - Entitled to
- Free health care
- Maternity benefit of 30s paid
- If worker had TB would get allowance for treatment at a sanatorium
The Sick Worker
Positive
- Hugh improvement on existing provision
- This act + unemployment insurance helped reduce poverty
- Gave workers security and peace of mind
- Workers were more likely to seek medical care now as they were covered
- Many workers getting professional medical treatment for 1st time
The Sick Worker
Positive - Stats
- 10 million men and 4 million women were covered by National Insurance
The Sick Worker
Negative
- No provision for hospitals
- Failed to include dependants in scheme (mostly women) (only enough for you not families)
- Another tax on low wages
- Everyone paid the same no matter on income (flat-rate contributions)
- Government admitted that it was only the beginning
The Unemployed
Labour Exchanges Act 1909 - Problem
- Unemployed would have to walk from factory asking if there were any vacancies - inefficient & dispiriting
- Factories had difficulties matching jobs with suitable skilled employees
The Unemployed
Labour Exchanges Act 1909 - Action
- Labour exchanges were set up throughout Britain
- Unemployed could go to a local labour exchange to look for a job instead of walking to factories
- Efficient for employers who could post jobs available
- Workers could claim benefits by signing on at the labour exchange
The Unemployed
Labour Exchanges Act 1909 - Positive
- By 1913, there were 430 labour exchanges in Britain
- They were dealing with 2 million workers per year by 1914
- They were a “great success” (Rees, historian)
The Unemployed
Labour Exchanges Act1909 - Negative
- Workers initially feared the labour exchanges were an employer’s tool to recruit strike breakers
The Unemployed
National Insurance Act Part 2 (1911) - Problem
- Seasonal lay-offs were common e.g. no more work: told to leave
- Unemployment was the major cause of poverty among the workforce
The Unemployed
National Insurance Act Part 2 (1911) - Action
- Insured workers in trade which were hit the most by seasonal unemployment or trade depression
- Compulsory for works in these trades to join scheme
- Workers and employers each paid 2 1/2d a week and state contributed
- If you became unemployed you could get 7s a week for 15 weeks in any 1 year
The Unemployed
National Insurance Act Part 2 (1911) - Positive
- Scheme marked advance on previous help to unemployed
- Helped soften the worst effects of unemployment
- Gave workers a sense of security
The Unemployed
National Insurance Act Part 2 (1911) - Negative
- Unemployment benefits were cut off after 15 weeks for ‘not genuinely seeking work’ even if there was no work in area
- Amount paid was not enough for basic living
- Everyone paid the same (flat-rates)
The Unemployed
National Insurance Act Part 2 (1911) - Negative: Quote
- Scheme was “merely a lifebelt” (R.C Birch, Historian)
Employed
Problem
- Low pay, long hours and exploitation of workers exist in a number of industries
Employed
Action - 1906 Act
Workmen’s Compensation Act 1906
- Nearly all employees are protected against industrial injuries
- Employers were liable to pay compensation for industrial disease contracted by workforce
Employed
Action - 1908 Act
- Coal Mines Act 1908
- Gave miners an eight-hour day
Employed - 1911 Act
- Shops Act 1911
- Gave shops workers a half-day off every week an reasonable meal breaks
Employed
Effectiveness
- Taken together, these laws were a significant improvement of working conditions for millions of workers
General Criticism of Liberal Reforms
- Reforms were modest
- Only covered certain categories of people
- Government did little about poor state of housing and public health
