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Chapter 11 Welfare

Chapter 11 Welfare. Poverty: Mind or Matter? What is mind? It doesn’t matter. What is (the) matter? Never mind

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Chapter 11 Welfare

Poverty: Mind or Matter?

What is mind?It doesn’t matter.What is (the) matter?Never mind.

Poverty: matter or mind?

The state of being without Associated with need, hardship, lack of reso

urces To be denied adequate resources to particip

ate meaningfully in society A state in which a family’s income is too low

to be able to buy the quantities of food, shelter, and clothing that are deemed necessary

Absolute poverty

When a human being fails to receive the minimum amount of resources to physically sustain themselves, ie, food, water

The state of being without Associated with need, hardship, lack of reso

urces A state in which a family’s income is too low

to be able to buy the quantities of food, shelter, and clothing that are deemed necessary

Relative poverty

Defined by the general living standards—relative to how wealthy your society is

To be denied adequate resources to participate meaningfully in society

The government measures poverty by

Using a “composite index”. A list of around 40 indicators of poverty Eg. Annual income, educational achievemen

t of an individual, employment status, health and diet

Distribution of real1 household disposable income£ per week

Figure 5.14

Distribution of real1 household disposable income2

United Kingdom

£ per week

90th percentile

75th percentile

Median

25th percentile

10th percentile

The government tackles poverty by

Collecting tax from the population National insurance Distributing the collected money fairly to… The needy: The unemployed, the sick, the young, the el

derly, the disabled

Ways of distributing the money

Funding the essential public services, eg. NHS

Giving out benefits on a regular basis to those who are eligible

The Welfare State: a History

1601—Poor Law Act, first government interest in public welfare

1834—Poor Law Amendment Act: only for those too sick or too old to work, otherwise in workhouses (Oliver Twist, 1837)

1848-1875—Public Health Acts: local health authorities

1870—Public Health Act: interest in primary education

The Welfare State: a History

1880—Public libraries, swimming pools, parks, local government charities, self help

1944—Butler Education Act, education free and compulsory

1945—Family Allowances Act 1946—National Insurance Act 1947—National Health Service (NHS: P183,

PP186-7)

The Welfare State: a History

1960s + 70s—More selective about benefits 1979—Thatcher (P184) 1979—Conservative government (P189)

Increased means testing Benefit cuts Privatisation Competition between local services Caring in the community Encouragement of pluralism

The Beveridge Report

1942—Sir William Beveridge Analysis of the state of poverty and welfare Government interest in social welfare affairs

The Beveridge Report

5 things/evils Want Disease Ignorance Squalor Idleness

Aim: a poverty-free society

The Welfare State has erradicated all poverty in the UK.

Do you agree?

The Welfare State: Why the Need?

Pensions, health care, education Should people struggle to get adequate ho

using? Should old age equal poverty? Should everyone be entitled to a standard

of living at subsistence level? Should people be able to cease pain and n

ot go bankrupt by long term of illness?

The Welfare State: Why the Need?

Should everyone be prepared by life by having at least the secondary education?

Should tertiary education be within reach for everybody or should people struggle to get that opportunity?

Should basic rights like health care be provided independent of socioeconomic status?

Can the market handle it?

Is there universal access to any good or service? Ability & willingness to pay Perfect information—easily accessible and comp

rehensible: consumers and suppliers must be well informed of the nature of the product and prices

Perfect competition—product, capital market Individuals—price-takers with equal power Complete markets—do markets ensure us again

st inflation? Redistribution—necessary

Problems

Bureaucracy—cost & efficiency In theory vs. in practice Unfair distribution—the rich taking advanta

ge of the system and milking the government for money

Chapter 11 Welfare

What do you understand by the term ‘welfare state’, as proposed by the Beveridge Report of 1942? (PP182-3)

Why do you think there have been some changes in government’s attitudes towards the traditional Universal Welfare Provision? (P184)

What are the main benefits and pensions available in the UK system of social security? (PP184-6)

What are the basic principles of the National Health Service? How are its costs met? (P186)

What is the pattern of house ownership in Britain today? Who is responsible for the provision of housing benefits? (PP188-190)

WELFARE IN BRITAIN — THE PRESENT

The three main areas of welfare provision: health, housing and social security

The post-war welfare structure: a combination of public and private provision

From the 1980s: encouragement of provision for one’s own health and retirement by paying into private insurance schemes

Housing

1950s and 1960s — Post War slum clearance

The 1980s: Sale of Council Houses Many people disagreed with this policy Local Council Responsibilities To provide adequate housing and meet s

pecial housing needs in its area, usually through the local Social Services Department

Housing

Private Sector Housing Housing Benefits Help with housing costs: part of the provi

sion of the Welfare State, either for people on low incomes or for people unexpectedly or temporarily out of work through illness or unemployment (administered by local government)

Housing

The 1961 three-bedroomed semi-detached house: typical of those now standing on the Clober estate

Semi-detached Houses

Detached House

Council Houses

Flats

London Flat 1930s

Lawn Road Flats 1933-1934

Workhouses

Workhouse, Winchester

Workhouse, Andover

•• Pictures of workhousePictures of workhouse

The Poor Law in 1834

OLIVER TWIST Charles Dickens

Dickens Centre, Rochester

Summer Hous

e

Portsmouth Museum

House he bought at his home town

Library

Housing Crisis in Britain

Negative equity—house price falls People are losing more money on their ho

me than they're earning everyday at work. The Telegraph Credit crunch—less lending, tighter mortgage

lending environment