Compare the approach to state welfare provision in the period 1906-1911 with that of the Poor law Amendment Act of 1834 in England Britain. What were the main reasons for this change of approach - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages... es that many rural parish vestries were dominated by farmers who were hiring labour because of the principle of determining the right to vote according to the size of property occupied. In 1834, the Poor Law Amendment Act was adopted and this minimised the political power of farmers who were hiring labour leading to a reduction in relief expenditure (Marshall 1985). Under the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834, parishes were grouped into Poor Law unions and by 1839, many of them had been grouped and had already built or were constructing workhouses. The able bodied and their families were receiving outdoor relief (Blaug,1963) through these Poor Law unions.
Under the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834, various orders were issued and this includes the 1842 Outdoor Labour Test Order and the 1844 Outdoor Relief Prohibitory Order. The 1842 Outdoor Labour Test Order was meant to regulate the giving of relief to able-bodied males. Under this order, males who were able-bodied could only be given outdoor relief if they accepted to work by the union. These were unions that did not have workhouses or those in which the enforcement of the workhouse test was not possible (MacKinnon, 1987).
As for the 1844 Outdoor Relief Prohibitory Order, this order prohibited the giving of outdoor relief to males and females who were able bodied except on account of sudden and urgent necessity and sickness. Many people did not agree on how the local administration of relief was impacted on by the New Poor Law or rather, the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834. As a result, this Act was followed by other amendments which were supported by a change in attitude of poor people towards relief (Fraser 1976).
Between the years 1906-1911, the British parliament passed Liberal welfare reforms. Liberal welfare reforms are a collective term used to refer to many social welfare legislations. These laws provided for free medical inspections, treatment and meals for needy school children and pensions provided on weekly basis ...Download file to see next pagesRead More