U2 - The Labour Reforms of 1945-51 Flashcards
1
Q
RECAP: The situation in Britain during WW2
A
- Throughout WW2 Britain was run by a coalition Government made up of Liberal, Labour and Conservative politicians
2
Q
1945 Election
A
Labour: 393 seats - 47.8%
Conservatives: 213 seats - 39.8%
Liberals: 13 seats
Others: 45 seats
Landslide 1st ever Labour majority
3
Q
Five Giants
A
- Want
- Ignorance
- Disease
- Squalor
- Idleness
4
Q
Want Acts
A
- The Family Allowance Act 1946
- Industrial Injuries Act 1946
- National Assistance Act 1948
5
Q
Want - The Family Allowance Act 1946
A
- Passed by wartime coalition government
- 5s per week was to be given for each children after the first
- Legal entitlement of the mother not the father
- The amount was very small, even for 1945 standards
- Hoped that it would help to keep wage demand down
6
Q
Want - Industrial Injuries Act 1946
A
- Compulsory for all workers
- Paid through contributions by workers and employers
- Applied to anyone injured at work
- Benefit for 6 months
- If the injury lasted beyond the person was entitled to a pension
7
Q
Want - National Insurance Act 1946
A
- Compulsory for all workers
- Covered sickness and unemployment benefits, maternity benefits, widow and guardian benefits, old age and a death grant
- Act would pay for itself as long as unemployment was less than 8.5%
- Ministry of National Insurance set up: 40,000 civil servants to run the system (determined to work)
8
Q
Want - National Assistance Act 1948
A
- Covered those who couldn’t afford to make insurance contributions e.g unemployed, low wages or handicapped
- The main claimant had to pass a ‘Needs Test’
- Payments were low: could be a weekly or one-off payment
- This act did away with the workhouse
9
Q
Criticisms of Social Security (WANT) - negative
A
- Benefit levels were fixed for 5 years but prices rose (inflation) and money was worth less
- Benefits were only 19% of an average wage and not enough to keep people above the poverty line
10
Q
Criticisms of Social Security (WANT) - positive
A
- The population was covered from the ‘cradle to the grave’
- If people were in need the government would be there to help
- Poverty was reduced but not eliminated
11
Q
Want - Analysis/EV
A
- Collectively acts did provide care from ‘Cradle to the grave’
- Did away with the poorhouse
- However government rejected Beveridge’s principle and benefits were low
- National Assistance was meant to be a safety net ended up being relied on than anticipated
12
Q
Ignorance - Butler’s Education Act 1944
Who implemented it
A
- Labour implemented this act passed by the wartime coalition
13
Q
Ignorance - Butler’s Education Act 1944
Most important terms of the act
A
- The school leaving age to be 15 and then 16 as soon as possible (16 didn’t happen until 1972)
- There were to be 3 stages of education - Nursery, Primary and Secondary - P & S were compulsory and free
- Pupils to sit an examination at 11 in England (the 11-plus) or 12 in Scotland (the ‘qualy’). The result would determine which type of secondary school they’d go to
14
Q
Ignorance - Butler’s Education Act 1944
Most important terms of the act - Examination passed
A
- Go to a grammar school (England)
- A senior secondary school or an academic education (Scotland)
15
Q
Ignorance - Butler’s Education Act 1944
Most important terms of the act - Examination failed
A
- Go to a secondary modern school (England)
- Junior secondary (Scotland)
- These are for more practical education
16
Q
Ignorance - School Building
A
- School building programme was a priority because:
a) Many schools had been damaged or destroyed during the war
b) The school leaving age was raised and secondary education was made compulsory
17
Q
Ignorance - School Building - Stats
A
- By 1950, 1,176 schools had been built or were under construction
18
Q
Ignorance - Analysis/EV
A
- The schools built a two-tier system
- It was clear that a first-rate, second-rate structure had been put in place
- Created divisions in society as a whole
- Did not suit late developers
- Labour didn’t address the educational needs of working-class children
19
Q
Squalor - Housing
A
- There was a shortage of construction workers and a shortage/high cost of building materials
- Aneurin Bevan was charge of the Ministry of Health which had responsibility for Housing
- First priority was to house the homeless
- Government continued with the war-time policy of putting up ‘pre-fabricated’ homes
- Prefabs were ready made factory built houses that would be put up quickly
20
Q
Squalor - Housing Stats
A
- Major housing shortages at the end of the war - 700,000 had been destroyed
- In Scotland alone 469,000 new homes were needed
- 1/3 of all houses were in need of repair and renovation
- 157,000 prefabs were built- they were used for much longer than was originally planned
21
Q
Squalor - New Towns Act, 1946
A
- Act tried to solve the problem of overcrowding in cities by planning new communities
- 12 new towns including Glenrothes and East Kilbride in Scotland were planned
- New towns were carefully planned out Industrial areas would be built away from housing areas
- Communities would have schools, shops and leisure facilities
22
Q
Squalor - Town and Country Planning Act, 1947
A
- Local authorities could buy land for building low cost homes
- Local authorities received a 75% subsidy for building council houses
- Poor housing and homelessness were still serious problems
23
Q
Squalor - Town and Country Planning Act, 1947 Stats
A
- By 1951 700,000 houses had been built but there was still a shortage of 750,000 homes
24
Q
Squalor Overall - Good
A
- Prefabs provided temporary housing
- 700,000 council houses built
- 12 New Towns designed and built
- A great deal achieved despite shortages of workers materials
25
Q
Squalor Overall - Bad
A
- Many prefabs were used much longer than planned
- Government did not create a separate Ministry of Housing
- 750,000 homes still needed
- Homelessness and poor housing continued
26
Q
Squalor - Analysis/Ev
A
- Continued hosing shortage was one of the main reasons Labour lost in 1951 election
- 1951 census showed that there was still 750,000 houses needed
- Labours house-building does not compare well with previous governments from 1930s
- However given the social and economic circumstances (WAR) - the shortage of building materials and skilled workers: shouldn’t be judged harshly
27
Q
Idleness - Unemployment
A
- Unemployment rose from 1945-47 when demobilised service men and woman came home
- Unemployment peaked at 480,000 then fell
- Unemployment never returned to the massive levels of the 1930s
28
Q
Idleness - Quote
A
- The Labour Chancellor Hugh Dalton described low unemployment as “the greatest revolution brought about by the Labour Government
29
Q
Idleness - Labour deserve some credit for:
A
- Negotiating Marshal Aid form the USA and using this money to subsidise the rebuilding of Britain’s infrastructure creating jobs
- Nationalising certain industries (coal, electricity, steel, gas, railways and Bank of England): although did more to protest than create jobs - NCR and TimeX (Dundee): Created thousands of jobs
30
Q
Idleness - Many reasons for unemployment that were not Labours fault
A
- The ‘Baby Boom’ removed woman from the workforce
- Export industries boomed (cars, motorcycles, chemicals) created many jobs
31
Q
Idleness - Analysis/Ev
A
- Unemployment remained low: especially compared to the 1930s
- Hugh Daltons Quote
- Low unemployment is due to a mixture of Gov policies, private industry, local councils and the Baby Boom
32
Q
Disease - The NHS 1946
A
- Act was passed in 1946 and implemented on the ‘Appointed Day’ - 5 July 1948
- Aneurin Bevan was Minister for Health and Housing
33
Q
Disease - The NHS 1946 Stats
A
- 9% of funding for the NHS came from National Insurance the rest from taxation
- At first 2/3 of doctors were opposed to the scheme: Beveridge allowed them to keep their private patients and get a fee per patient
- By 1950 the NHS cost was 358m
34
Q
Disease - Free and provided:
A
- GPs
- Specialist treatment
- Hospital treatment
- Dentists
- Opticians
- Prescriptions
35
Q
Disease - What had to be put into place in 1951?
A
- Charges for prescriptions, dental care and eye care (PET charges)
- Bevan resigned when this happened
36
Q
Disease - Analysis/Ev
A
- Hugely successful reform
- Big demand for NHS after 1948 suggests how much it was needed
- Expenses of NHS came as a shock (358m)
- PET charges had to be introduced due to post-war economy
- Bevan resigned
- R.C. Birch quote
37
Q
Disease - R.C. Birch quote
A
- “arguable the biggest single achievement in the story of the welfare state” R.C. Birch
