Liberal

• Liberal government introduced welfare reforms


  1906-1914
• Reasons for liberal reforms

  • Government wanted to create strong men to fight for the country
  • Government wanted healthy workers to work in factories
  • Government wanted to decrease poverty rates in Britain
• Laissez-faire


  The idea that governments shouldn't intervene, people should get themselves out of trouble
• The liberal government believed they should intervene and promised to change how the poor were cared for
• Groups the liberal reforms aimed to help

  • The young
  • The old
  • The sick
• Liberal reforms for the young

  1. Education (provision of meals) act of 1906

  2. Provided poor young people one free meal per day during the school term
• Free school meals provided

  Improved health and school performance of children
• Free school meals were only provided during term, not during holidays
• Very few children actually accessed the free school meals, only 3% of children aged 5-11 got free school meals in 1914
• The liberal reforms were not effective in helping the young because the benefits of free meals were lost during holidays
• Liberal reforms for the old


  1. Old Ages Pensions Act 1908

  2. People over 70 with annual income less than £21 received 5 shillings per week pension
• Life expectancy was 45-50 years, so majority of people died before age 70 and never received the pension
• The pension amount of 5 shillings was below the poverty line
• The liberal reforms were not effective in helping the old because the pension was too low and only available at an age most people did not live to
• Liberal reforms for the sick


  1. National Insurance Act (part 1) 1911

  2. Entitled workers to free medical treatment and medicine
• The benefits of the National Insurance Act only covered the worker, not their family
• Medical treatment ended after 26 weeks even if the patient was still ill
• The liberal reforms were not effective in helping the sick because the medical coverage was limited in duration and only covered the worker, not their family
• Overall, the liberal reforms were not effective in meeting the needs of the British people because the reforms had too many restrictions resulting in very few people actually being helped