The Liberal Reforms & Public Health (AQA GCSE History)

How important were the Liberal reforms for the improvement of public health in Britain? - Summary

The Liberal reforms (1906–1914) were very important for improving public health in Britain. They marked the government taking greater responsibility for the well-being of its people. Key reforms, such as the National Insurance Act of 1911, provided workers with sickness and unemployment benefits, ensuring they received some income if they could not work. Other measures included free school meals for children, medical inspections in schools, and old-age pensions for the elderly. These reforms laid the foundation for modern public health and social welfare, showing that the government could take action to support those in need.

However, the Liberal reforms did not go far enough to solve all public health problems. They focused mainly on male workers, leaving many women and their families without help. While they introduced some medical inspections for children, they did not provide free treatment for illnesses found during these inspections. Additionally, Britain still lacked a national health service to provide healthcare for everyone. This meant that many poorer people continued to struggle to access doctors and treatments. It was not until after the Second World War, with the creation of the NHS in 1948, that universal healthcare was fully realised.

Why were the Liberal reforms passed?

Defining the Liberal reforms

• The Liberal Party was one of the main parties in Britain in the late 19th and early 20th centuries

  • They were in government in 1906-1915

• The Liberal reforms refer to laws passed to improve the nation's health and welfare by the Liberal Party when they were in power

Reasons for the Liberal reforms

• After the Public Health Act of 1875, there was still a desire for reforms to improve public health. These reasons can be divided into:

  • the impact of war

  • public health campaigning, such as Booth and Rowntree

  • changing government attitudes

The impact of war

• The Boer War (1899-1902) showed the scale of the public health problems in Britain

  • Between 40% and 60% of recruits were rejected from the British Army due to their poor health

    • In some towns, the Army turned away nearly all of the eligible men

• After the war, newspapers began commenting on the poor health of the British people. People began to worry about:

  • how effectively Britain could rule their empire

  • the threat of Germany as they had a sophisticated public health system

Charles Booth

• Charles Booth was a shipowner and social reformer

• Booth's report, Life and Labour of the People in London (1889), showed that:

  • 30% of people could not afford food, even though they worked full-time

  • there was a link between poverty, crime and high death rates

• Between 1881 and 1903, Booth created a series of poverty maps of London

• To highlight his findings, Booth colour-coded each street in London

  • Bright colours of pink and red indicate wealth

  • Dark colours of black and navy showed poverty

Seebohm Rowntree

• Seebohm Rowntree was an industrialist in York

  • His father owned Rowntree's, a chocolate company

  • Seebohm worked for the family business

• In 1899, Rowntree began a study into the living conditions of the working classes in York

  • He was inspired by the work of Charles Booth

• Poverty: A Study of Town Life (1901) concluded that:

  • around 28% of the population of York lived below the poverty line

    • This disproved the idea that poverty was only an issue in London

  • children and older people were most likely to live in poverty

    • This created, what Rowntree called, a 'poverty circle'

• Rowntree is often called the 'Einstein of the Welfare State'

  • He influenced the Labour government to introduce the NHS

Changing government attitudes

• The government dropped the laissez-faire attitude towards public health

  • Politicians like Winston Churchill and David Lloyd George believed that direct government involvement was the only way to improve public health

• 20th-century governments wanted to take bigger steps to improve health as it would make Britain a bigger economic power

The Liberal reforms

• Between 1906 and 1911, the Liberal Party passed key legislation such as:

  • free school meals for the poor (1906)

  • insurance for people if they were injured at work (1906)

  • free medical inspections in school (1907)

  • making it illegal to neglect children (1908)

  • pensions for people too old to work (1908)

  • labour exchanges to find people employment (1908)

  • National Insurance (1911)

    • Workers paid a percentage of their wage to cover the cost of sick pay and medical treatment

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A timeline showing the key Liberal reforms from 1906 to 1911

Did the Liberal reforms improve public health?

• The Liberal reforms were incredibly significant in the improvement of public health

• However, the reforms faced criticism

Positive impacts

• Male workers received more support than they had done previously. They gained support for:

  • unemployment

  • accidents at work

  • general poor health

  • becoming too old to work

• The health of children slowly improved during this period

Criticisms

The reforms were too limited

• The Labour Party argued that the reforms did not go far enough

  • Very few women benefitted from National Insurance

    • They continued to have no healthcare unless they could afford it

  • Old-age pensions did not pay people enough money

• Britain still did not have a national healthcare service

The reforms were too extensive

• Conservative politicians believed that the reforms went too far. They were concerned that:

  • people would no longer work and rely on government aid

  • taxes to pay for these reforms were too high