This text is the introduction of the Beveridge Report, called Social Insurance and Allied Services. This report was presented to the British Parliament in November 1942 and was published the on 1st of December 1942. He was commissioned by Arthur Greenwood, in June 1941. William Beveridge (1879-1963) taught in 1908 at the university of East End in London. It was a place where the poorest workers could benefit of juridical advices and attended lectures. He contributed to the elaboration of the important reformist laws of 1911, the National Insurance Act (this measure gave the British working classes the first contributory system of insurance against illness and unemployment). He taught economy at the London School of economics (1919-1937) and then at Oxford in the University College. The Liberal government's National Insurance Act was prepared with assistance from experts like William Beveridge, Churchill and Lloyd George. W. Beveridge chaired the coalition government committee set up during the war to examine social insurance schemes. W. Beveridge was the most qualified man for a thought concerning social services.
[...] William Beveridge pleaded for a social security system which was: - generalized: everybody, because he is a British citizen, must have his minimal needs guaranteed by the national solidarity. - unified: only one contribution is necessary to access to all the benefits. - Uniform: the social benefits are the same for everybody. This principle is the central issue of the notion of social security. The system is financed by a unique contribution. The benefits are the same for all in case of loss of earning. [...]
[...] For William Beveridge, abolition of want required a double re- distribution of income, through social insurance and by family needs. (l.33). Moreover, want could be eradicated if the plan for social security included children's allowances, health and rehabilitation services, and maintenance of employment. B. The principles for a good social security system Line 80, W.Beveridge explained his point of view about social security: scheme of social insurance against interruption and destruction of earning power and for special expenditures arising at birth, marriage and death”. [...]
[...] A vogue for social innovation which leads to the Beveridge Report - In May 1941 Churchill created the Post-War Problems Central Committee, directed by Reginald Butler. The aim was to study the problems linked to demobilisation, housing and agriculture after the war. Two periods about social questioning can be distinguished during the war. The first, from 1940 to 1942 is characterized by an abundance of initiative, until the publication of the Beveridge Report. For him, it was the government's duty to provide social protection for all British subjects, especially for those who had lost their capacity of earnings. [...]
[...] - The Beveridge Report rejected a social insurance system only reserved to the workers. He also struggled against the principle of an assistance limited to the destitutes. The Beveridge Report wanted to end with the distinction between the rich and the poor. He wanted to end with the moral distinction that provided allowances. Indeed, the social protection system was based on a moral behaviour, such as drinking or fornication. Moreover, some British citizens could not vote anymore only because of their moral behaviour. [...]
APA Style reference
For your bibliographyOnline reading
with our online readerContent validated
by our reading committee
