1
Q
three facts about Booth
A
- hired 35 co-workers over a period of 17 years to study the poor
- rejected the hardline taken by the COS
- wanted to explore structural explanations for poverty rather than just moral ones
2
Q
Booth’s investigation
A
- lasted 17 years with a team that varied over the years but with Booth being the central lynchpin throughout
- all were university educates so were expected to contribute and publish their now bits of writing regularly
3
Q
Booth’s findings
A
- divided the population into eight classes (A-G) believing the differentiation between them was fundamental in understanding the causes of poverty
- believed the poor couldn’t be held responsible for their own poverty
4
Q
Booth’s criticisms
A
- He openly admitted to relying on observation and didn’t take income into consideration when defining poverty. This was viewed as subjective and unreliable.
- Helen Bosanquet (COS) objected the social survey method as it had no underpinning philosophy or principle. Argued his poverty line was flawed and the lack of definiteness it conveyed. She attacked the statistical basis of his findings saying he underestimated the income of poor families and his team placed top heavy of a reliance on primary research findings.
- classes overlapped and no sharp distinctions between them
5
Q
facts about Rowntree
A
- devout Quaker and this dominated his attitudes to society and his workforce
- he believed healthy content workers would be more efficient so championed democracy in the workplace, a minimum wage and family/elderly allowances
6
Q
Rowntree’s investigations
A
- conducted three surveys of poverty in York providing a wealth of statistical data to support Booth (e.g. built on his idea about a poverty line, 30% in cities in poverty and beyond the control of the pauper themselves)
- wanted to find out the number of people in poverty but also the nature of it
- visited over 11,000 households and obtained information from about 46,000 people (two thirds of the city’s population)
7
Q
Rowntree’s findings
A
- found that 28% of the city’s population were in obvious need and living in squalor
- worked out that the minimum wage that would be necessary for a family to live in a state of physical efficiency was 21 shillings a week
- around 10% of York lived below the poverty line, living in what Rowntree defined as primary poverty, the remaining 18% lived in secondary poverty
- he argued that the death of the main wage earner and child illness could cause poverty, coming up with the cycle of poverty
- he was very comparable to booth as they shared similar criteria whereby poverty had to be visible to the investigator not based off income
8
Q
Rowntree’s criticisms
A
- Bosanquet believed he had overestimated the level of poverty by setting the poverty line too high
- based mainly off observation saying it was too subjective
- his findings were consistent his distinction between primary and secondary poverty weren’t designed to identify the poor but rather the nature of poverty
9
Q
socialsim
A
a political and economic ideology which advocates that the means of production should be owned and democratically controlled by the community as a whole
10
Q
when was the fabian society created?
A
- founded in 1884m and was comprised of socialist members
- resorted to gradual, non-confrontational methods to push for change
- key individuals included Beatrice and Sydney Webb and Emmeline Pankhurst
11
Q
what was the Fabian society?
A
- became a pre-eminent Edwardian left wing society attracting a range of prominent figures
- held public meetings, published numerous pamphlets and lobbied politicians on a wide range of topics from poor law reform to international alliances
- all were united in their rejection of international upheaval, preferring to utilise the power of local government
- 1884
12
Q
who were the Webb’s in the fabian society?
A
- used thorough research methods and emerged as prodigious authors of works like the minority report to the commission of the poor law
- they contributed much to the modern welfare state
13
Q
what did the first Fabian society pamphlet say?
A
- were aimed at promoting social justice and were generally more radical in their policies than the early 20th century reforms of the liberal government
- in 1906 they lobbied for the introduction of a minimum wage
- 1911 the creation of a universal health care service that would enable to British to be sufficiently physically fit to develop their empire.
14
Q
why did the Fabians support the Boer war?
A
- due to their view on imperialism and the role this should play in foreign policy, believing small nations had no place in a worldwide empire
- supported the creation of a citizen army to replace the professional one
- they said the only way this would work was if society was fit so there should be. universal health service and an extension of the factory acts
- this would mean those in half time employment could be subject to extensive physical training, education in citizenship and training in the use of modern weapons.
15
Q
what role did the fabian society have in the formation of the labour party?
A
- sent delegates to the Labour Party Foundation Conference
- this resulted in the labour representative committee (LRC) to which left wing and socialist societies affiliated with
- six years later, 26 LRC sponsored candidates won seats in the election and set up as a separate party in the commons (labour) reflecting a growth n interest of socialist ideas
- fabian membership numbered 2500 by 1908, establishing a student section in 1914 with 500 members.
16
Q
what did the Fabian society form in 1895?
A
-a bequest of 20,000 from Henry Hutchinson, a Fabian led to the creation of the London School of economic and political sciences, originally intended as a research institute to prove the efficiency of the collectivist idea.
17
Q
what was the Boer war?
A
- 1901
- between British Empire and the two independent Boer republics (the Orange Free State and the Transvaal Republic)
- Emily Hobhouse spoke about the horror going on under the British name
- 26,000 Boer Women and children died in concentration camps
- looking at the number of troops and establishments of each military, it should have been a clear win for the British troops but the Boer’s were well equips to deal with the SA weather and terrain
18
Q
What did the Boer War reveal about the poor?
A
- 50% of British troops were classed as medically unfit
- 2/3 potential recruits did not pass the army medical examination
- The investigations of booth and Rowntree confirmed that this was due to poverty. Rowntree noted that 26.5% of recruits trying to enlist from York were rejected
- the success of the British army depended on fit and healthy soldiers to expand their empire
- this expressed a concern that the British working people were somehow operating at a less than efficient level
- Britain had been the leading industrial nation during the 19th century but the successful economises of the USA and Germany now implied Britain had an inferior workforce with neither the skills or stamina to compete
- Emily hobhouse who spoke of disease and squalor in CC drew parallels to domestic women and children suffering similar conditions
19
Q
what was the governments response to the Boer war?
A
- set up a committee to investigate in 1903 known was the interdepartmental committee on physical deterioration
- 53 recommendations were made such as medical inspections of children in schools, free school meals, training in mothering skills
- however the committee suggested that ‘fears of national deterioration’ were largely unfounded’ (no proof)
20
Q
what were other responses to the Boer war?
A
- intellectuals and those in the political elite started a campaign for ‘national efficiency’
- some claimed they were involved for military reasons, others economic.
- regardless the campaign focussed people’s attention on the need to improve conditions for the poor.
21
Q
what were the military and economic reasoning for a campaign of national efficiency?
A
- military = Britain was a huge empire needing a huge army to defend it. without change Britain would lose its military strength and its empire would crumble
- economic= Britains workforce up until the end of the 19th century had been the leading industrial nation, other countries were starting to take over. Britain would lose its economic competitiveness and other countries would overtake it leaving it behind (major campaign of the fabian society)
22
Q
what was the royal commission of 1905-09?
A
- set up by the conservative government in 1905
- 20 members, 5 poor law guardians, 6 COS members, 4 members of the local government board, Charles Booth and Sidney Webb along with religious and trade unions
- better qualified than those who had participated in the royal commission in 1832-34
- visited 200 poor law unions and 400 institutions, taking evidence from 450 witnesses and analysing 900 written statements
- However, when they came to writing the report, they couldn’t agree and so ended up producing two
- some say the conservatives only conducted this action in a bid to guarantee voting in the next election
23
Q
what did the majority report say?
A
- the origins of poverty were basically moral
- the Poor Law should stay as the main vehicle for dealing with poverty
- Boards of Guardians allowed too much relief and they should be replaced by public assistance committees
- general mixed workhouses did not deter the able-bodied poor
- there should be greater co-operation between charities and those administering the poor law and voluntary aid committees should be set up to enable this to happen
24
Q
what did the minority report say?
A
- the origins of poverty were basically economic
- a Ministry of Labour should be set up to introduce public work schemes, set up a string of national labour exchanges to help the unemployed find jobs, organise a schedule of training schemes and set up detention colonies for those who were deliberately idle
- the Poor Law administration should be broken up into education committees to deal with Child poverty, Pension committees to deal with problems of the elderly poor and health committees to deal with problem of poor who were sick or infirm.
25
successes of the royal commission
- the minority report captured the interests of the younger generations meaning more people were getting involved in welfare agenda
- both found solidarity in certain areas pointing to a clear solution and pressuring government to come up with a solution (e.g. both condemned the continuation of general mixed workhouses and the wasteful overlapping of services, but also the failure of local boards of guardians to behave in a uniform way)
- minority report challenged longhand views that were help by gov employees
- the work of the commission was detailed and done over a period of four years which gave the investigations into the causes of poverty a high profile.
- members had more experience than the 1832 commission
26
failures of the royal commission
- the support of younger generations received by the minority report risked antagonising leading politicians in both the government and the opposition
- due to the creation of diametrically opposite reports the government didn't feel compelled to act on either set of recommendations. therefore those who strengthened no change were greatly strengthened by the majority report and rather concessions were made to make less wholesale change.
27
Boer war pros and cons
- increased gov action on an international scale (applicants to army)
- increased solidarity between intellectuals (national efficiency)
- increased general sympathy and awareness of poverty (Emily Hobhouse)
28
individuals pros and cons
- raise awareness and sympathy (poor through no fault of thier own, structural explanations)
- solidarity in campaign (conclusions became concordant of each other)
- less successful in gov intervention (clear flaws like observational nature of poverty unlike undisputed horror of the Boer war)
29
fabian society pros and cons
- ability to influence government (formation of the Labour Party greater ability make ideas policy, also many ideas coherent with gov initiates encouraging greater co-operation between the two bodies)
- didn't explicitly achieve solidarity between interllectuals but reflected the views of the masses and brining people under a common idea (e.g. Beatrice Webb worked as an investigator for Booth but also creation of LSEP proved efficacy of collectivist idea and this idea spread to society through students it enrolled)
- limited in increasing sympathy as despite adopting more liberal approach more about economic and political factors intertwined with poverty rather than the harsh reality (unlike media in Boer war and stat evidence for individuals)
30
PM, treasury and Board of trade during 3.6
PM = Herbert Asquith
treasury = David Lloyd George
Board of Trade = Winston Churchill
31
successes of old age pensions act (1909)
- were to paid to men and women over 70 and said through Prost offices
- funded from taxes (non-contributary)
- a single person received 5s a week, married couple 7s6d which was later raised to 10s
32
limitations of old age tension act (1909)
- pensions paid based off income, full pensions were paid only to those who had an income between 8s and 12s received a reduced rate on a sliding scale. over 12s a week there was no pension at all
- to quality for a pension people needed to have been British citizens of residence for 20 years, wouldn't be given to someone who had continually failed to find work, who was drunk, who had claimed poor relief in the last two years or had been to prison in the last 10. this placed severe limits on who was eligible
33
successes of Labour exchanges (1909)
- Labout exchange act set up a series of labour exchanges that were intended to help the unemployed find any available work
- helped the underclass who would otherwise have trampled for hours to find work
- in February 1910, 83 labour exchanges were opened and by 1914 there were over 450 throughout England and Wales finding work for 3000 people a day
- labour exchanges were closely tied to national insurance, only by singing on at a labour exchange as proof they were looking for work could people claim benefits.
34
successes of Trade Boards Act (1909)
- this act provided for the creation of boards in specific sweated trades (a trade where people worked for exceptionally low wages in conditions the were prejudicial to physical and social well-being)
- e,g, matchbox making, lace making and tailoring
- they could negotiate for a set, legally enforceable minimum wage criteria
- wages were no longer arrived at by a private agreement between employer and employee. this set a national expectation many were obliged to conform to in a bid to prevent strikes
35
limitations of Trade Boards Act (1909)
- although some 200,000 workers were involved, no attempt was made to define what was meant by a minimum wage, was rather an expectation of guidance
- no legislation was physical enforced
36
successes of the National Insurance Act (1911) - part one
- scheme applied to all workers earning less than £160 a year and all manual workers between the ages 16-60
- payments were to be approved by approved societies
- Employees contributed 4d, employers 3d a week and the state 2d a week (all were in proportion)
- insured people received 10s a week for up to 13 weeks and then 5s a week for a further 13 weeks in any one year
- all drugs/medicines were now free
- maternity care was provided with a one off benefit of 30s
37
limitations of the National Insurance act (1911) -part one
- most workers resented paying 4d from their wages
- paid at a flat rate and so the poorest workers were hit he hardest as they had the worst ability to pay but needed it the most
- although £1.5 million was set aside for the treatment of those paying, this was only available for the contributor to the scheme none of the were available for their families
38
successes of the National Insurance Act (1911) -part two
- dealt with insurance against unemployment
- employers, employees and the state all paid 2.5d to the scheme
- workers could claim unemployment benefits of 7s a week for up to 15 weeks in any one year
- no claim could be made if unemployment resulted from a person being dismissed for misconduct
39
failures of the National Insurance Act (1911) - part two
- the scheme first applied to a small group of trades where people were generally well paid but which were prone to to seasonal unemployment (e.g. ship building and vehicle construction)
- the intention was to expand this in order to cover a wider range of industries but WW1 started before this could be properly rolled up.
40
limitations of the labour exchange act (1909)
- they were voluntary
- the liberals chose to tackle the problem of destitution by receiving the unemployed rather than by attempting to prevent unemployment
- this meant there was no long term solution to deal with the problem at its roots
41
mansion house enquiry into unemployment
1885
- conducted by Booth
- in 1884 the lord mayor of London opened up his annual relief fund for the poor and asked the royal statistical society to advise him on how the money should be spent
- demonstrated the type of information that could be extracted from census data (statistics) and questionnaires
- influenced how booth conducted his future studies
A level History
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