why the liberals passed reforms Flashcards
context
Prior to 1906, there was almost no help available for poor
people in Britain.
• Governments believed in ‘laissez-faire’ – not interfering in
peoples’ lives.
• The only limited help available for those in poverty was the
‘Poor Law’ which usually resulted in people being put in a
workhouse (poorhouse in Scotland) where conditions were
horrendous.
• The poor relied on charities such as Barnardos, the
Salvation Army and the YMCA but demand was too great
for them to help everyone.
• From 1906 the Liberal government introduced welfare
reforms to offer more help to the poor
booth and rowntree - knowledge
At the end of the 19th century, Charles Booth, a London businessman, published Life and Labour of the People of London (1899), revealing that 35% of London’s population lived in extreme poverty. His findings shocked the public and warned that Britain risked a Socialist revolution if poverty wasn’t addressed.
Seebohm Rowntree’s study of York revealed that nearly 30% of the population lived in poverty. He identified a “poverty line” as the minimum needed for survival and highlighted key times when people were more likely to fall into poverty, especially old age.
booth and rowntree - analysis
This caused the Liberal government to pass
reforms because they now had statistical
evidence which showed that no matter how hard
people tried, they could not lift themselves out of
poverty and the government would need to act
to help them.
booth and rowntree - analysis+
However, many historians have challenged this view
that politicians had any genuine concern for the
welfare of the poor and instead wanted to pass
reforms for political advantage – such as Churchill
making a name for himself or the liberal party wanting
to gain working class votes over Labour.
Municipal Socialism - knowledge
Local (municipal) authorities had begun to introduce reforms to
improve living and working conditions.
• These were funded through local taxation.
• Liberal politicians had led these reforms at a local level
• For example, Joseph Chamberlain was mayor of Birmingham
between 1873 and 1875. Under his leadership gas and water
supplies came under public ownership. He also oversaw the
clearing of slums and the development of parks
• This provided a model that a Liberal government could follow at a
national level.
• In cities such as Glasgow there were a wide range of services:
housing, tramcars, water, libraries, parks, fire service were provided
by municipal authorities
Municipal Socialism - analysis
This was important because improvements to
towns and cities at a local level using taxes
showed people that municipal socialism
worked.
Municipal Socialism - analysis +
However, despite the success of the local
model, there remained huge opposition
nationally in Britain to the idea of taxing the
wealthy more to provide for the poor –
particularly from the upper classes and middle
classes who resented losing out financially to
provide for the needy
Fears over National Security - knowledge
Britain became involved in a war in South Africa,
which was part of the British Empire at the time
• The government became alarmed when almost
25% of potential volunteers were rejected on the
grounds of ill health
• This figure was even higher when it came to the
industrial cities like Manchester
• This was greatly alarming as the British Army
should have been able to protect the country
against enemies far stronger than the Boers
Fears over National Security- analysis
Concerns over national security were important
because if Britain did not have a fit and healthy
army then she would not be able to compete in
future wars such as the one looming with
Germany or retain her status as a ‘Great Power’.
fears over national security- analysis+
However, some of the reforms introduced by
the Liberals were not relevant to army
recruits. For example, the introduction of the
pension for the elderly. Therefore, national
security could not have been the only reason
for reform
New Liberalism - knowledge
Old Liberalism meant laissez–faire; poverty as the
problem of the individual and minimal state
intervention
• A new type of Liberalism had emerged by 1906. ‘New
Liberalism’, was the idea that state intervention would
free people from poverty.
• New Liberals, such as Lloyd George, Winston Churchill
and Herbert Asquith, argued that there were
circumstances in which it was right for the state to
intervene in people’s lives
New Liberalism - analysis
This was important because it is clear that the
‘New Liberals’ were becoming more influential
within the party and this did cause old
attitudes about social reform to change
New Liberalism - analysis+
However, historians have pointed out that the
new Liberals were still vastly outnumbered by
‘old’ laissez-faire Liberals and it was only when
‘old Liberal’ Campbell Bannerman died in 1908
that the new Liberals were able to introduce
their interventionist ideas
rise of labour - knowledge
By 1900 the majority of working class men had
the vote.
• A political party to represent the interests of the
working classes had emerged – based on socialist
principles. (The Labour Party, 1900)
• The Liberal Party recognised the threat this new
party posed to its traditional support in many
working class areas.
• They needed to offer something to the working
class male voters
rise of labour - analysis
It could be argued that the Liberals realised
that they had to introduce social reforms or
risk losing political support from the working
classes. Therefore, they did so to gain a
political advantage
