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55-612: Executive councils were direct descendants of the insurance committees established by section 59 of the National Insurance Act 1911 but with additional responsibility for NHS dentistry and NHS optician services. Their role was essentially neutral and routine. They played little part in developing the services they administered. There were 138 executive councils in England and Wales and 25 in Scotland. The role of

110-450: A county basis, counties being organised into parishes which could set up workhouses between them. However, these workhouses were intended to help only the elderly, sick and orphaned, not the able-bodied poor . The sick, elderly and infirm were cared for in poorhouses whereas the able-bodied poor were provided with poor relief in their own homes. The Speenhamland system was a form of outdoor relief intended to mitigate rural poverty at

165-701: A level with Germany; we should not emulate them only in armaments ." His measure gave the British working classes the first contributory system of insurance against illness and unemployment. The Act only applied to wage earners—about 70% of the work force—their families and the unwaged were not covered. After first praising the proposal, the Conservatives split, and most voted against it. But when returned to office they did not change it. Some trade unions who operated their own insurance schemes, and friendly societies who had their own schemes, at first opposed

220-478: A new set of punishments to inflict upon the population of vagabonds. These included being "bored through the ear" for a first offense and hanging for "persistent beggars". Unlike the previous brutal punishments established by the Vagabonds Act 1547, these extreme measures were enforced with great frequency. However, despite its introduction of such violent actions to deter vagabonding, the Vagabonds Act 1572

275-467: A point roughly half that of average wages of a century before. "The boom-and-bust nature of European trade in woolen cloth, England's major manufacture and export" caused a larger fraction of the population of England to fall under poverty. With this increase in poverty, all charities operated by the Catholic Church were abolished due to the impact of protestant reformation . A law passed by

330-607: A reference to the limited enforcement of the punishments established by the Vagabonds Act 1547 by stating "the extremity of some [of the laws] have been occasion that they have not been put into use." Following the revision of the Vagabonds Act 1547 , Parliament passed the Poor Act 1551 . This focused on using the parishes as a source of funds to combat the increasing poverty epidemic. This statute appointed two "overseers" from each parish to collect money to be distributed to

385-613: A single national organisation in the healthcare field (the National Health Service ) which, among other things, fulfilled the role of the Approved Societies; Approved Societies thus became redundant, and ceased to exist in 1948. The National Insurance Act Part II provided for time-limited unemployment benefit for certain highly cyclical industries, especially the building trades, mechanical engineering, foundries, vehicle manufacturing, and sawmills. The scheme

440-592: A system of health insurance for industrial workers in Great Britain based on contributions from employers, the government, and the workers themselves. It was one of the foundations of the modern welfare state. It also provided unemployment insurance for designated cyclical industries. It formed part of the wider social welfare reforms of the Liberal Governments of 1906–1915, led by Henry Campbell-Bannerman and H. H. Asquith . David Lloyd George ,

495-435: A vagabond, men who had been discharged from the military, released servants, and servants whose masters had died were specifically exempted from the act's punishments. This legislation did not establish any means to support these individuals. A system to support individuals who were willing to work, but who were having difficulty in finding employment, was established by the Poor Act 1575 . As provided for in this, justices of

550-455: A year. The money would be collected from labour exchanges . By 1913, 2.3 million were insured under the scheme for unemployment benefit and almost 15 million insured for sickness benefit. A key assumption of the Act was an unemployment rate of 4.6%. At the time the Act was passed, unemployment was at 3% and the fund was expected to quickly build a surplus. Under the Act, employees' contributions to

605-751: The Parliament of Great Britain and sponsored by Sir Edward Knatchbull in 1723 introduced a "workhouse test", which meant that a person who wanted to receive poor relief had to enter a workhouse and undertake a set amount of work. The test was intended to prevent irresponsible claims on a parish's poor rate . By the mid to late 18th century most of the British Isles was involved in the process of industrialization in terms of production of goods, manner of markets and concepts of economic class. In some cases, factory owners "employed" children without paying them, thus exacerbating poverty levels. Furthermore,

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660-470: The Poor Act 1562 , in 1563, and once this act took effect parishioners could be brought by the bishop before the justices , and continued refusal could lead to imprisonment until contribution was made. However, even the Poor Act 1562 still suffered from shortcomings, because individuals could decide for themselves how much money to give in order to gain their freedom. A more structured system of donations

715-484: The local dental committee , two by the local pharmaceutical committee , two by the local optical committee and four by the local authority. One of the tasks of the committee was to maintain lists of registered patients and registered practitioners. The National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990 abolished the committees, and they were replaced by family health services authorities. Nearly half of all family practitioner committee administrators were sacked, and

770-594: The "ninepence for fourpence"). Under the Act, workers could take sick leave and be paid 10 shillings a week for the first 13 weeks, and 5 shillings a week for the next 13 weeks. Workers also gained access to free treatment for tuberculosis, and the sick were eligible for treatment by a panel doctor. Due to pressure from the Co-operative Women's Guild , the National Insurance Act provided maternity benefits. In parts of Scotland whose economy

825-641: The Liberal Chancellor of the Exchequer, was the prime moving force behind its design, negotiations with doctors and other interest groups, and final passage, assisted by Home Secretary Winston Churchill . Lloyd George followed the example of Germany, which under Chancellor Otto von Bismarck had provided compulsory national insurance against sickness from 1884. After visiting Germany in 1908, Lloyd George said in his 1909 Budget speech that Britain should aim to be "putting ourselves in this field on

880-719: The National Insurance Fund than they took out. In 1925, and then 1931, further Acts were passed which reduced the government contribution to the fund: the government pressured the backers of Approved Societies (the insurance companies, trade unions, and so on) to take on the financial burden themselves. Together with increasing government control on which treatments they were allowed to fund, this led many Societies to complain that they had become little more than branches of government, and membership attendance at society meetings dwindled away, becoming virtually non-existent by 1940. The National Insurance Act 1946 introduced

935-545: The Poor Act 1575 was passed into law, yet more dramatic changes were made to the methods to fight vagabondage and to provide relief to the poor. The Act of 1578 transferred power from the justices of the peace to church officials in the area of collecting the new taxes for the relief of poverty established in the Vagabonds Act 1572. In addition, this Act of 1578 also extended the power of the church by stating that " vagrants were to be summarily whipped and returned to their place of settlement by parish constables ." By eliminating

990-559: The Poor Laws of this era encouraged children to work through an apprenticeship , but by the end of the 18th century the situation changed as masters became less willing to apprentice children, and factory owners then set about employing them to keep wages down. This meant that there were not many jobs for adult labourers. For those who could not find work there was the workhouse as a means of sustenance. The 1782 poor relief law proposed by Thomas Gilbert aimed to organise poor relief on

1045-675: The Report of the Royal Commission into the Operation of the Poor Laws 1832 called the Speenhamland System a "universal system of pauperism". The system allowed employers, including farmers and the nascent industrialists of the town, to pay below subsistence wages, because the parish would make up the difference and keep their workers alive. So the workers' low income was unchanged and the poor rate contributors subsidised

1100-551: The act failed to recognise the impotent poor; those who could not provide for themselves. These included the sick, the elderly, and the disabled. This lack of a precise definition of a vagabond would hinder the effectiveness of the Vagabonds and Beggars Act 1494 for years to come. The problem of poverty in England was exacerbated during the early 16th century by a dramatic increase in the population. This rose "from little more than 2 million in 1485, ... [to] about 2.8 million by

1155-564: The assets of hundreds of rich religious institutions, including their great estates, were taken by the Crown. This had a devastating impact on poor relief. According to the historian Paul Slack , prior to the Dissolution "it has been estimated that monasteries alone provided 6,500 pounds a year in alms before 1537 [equivalent to £4,700,000 in 2023 ]; and that sum was not made good by private benefactions until after 1580." In addition to

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1210-508: The closing of the monasteries, most hospitals (which in the 16th century were generally almshouses rather than medical institutions) were also closed, as they "had come to be seen as special types of religious houses". This left many of the elderly and sick without accommodation or care. In 1531, the Vagabonds and Beggars Act 1494 was revised, and a new act, the Vagabonds Act 1530 , was passed by Parliament which did make some provision for

1265-407: The cost of helping the poor. Alongside ever-changing attitudes towards poverty, many methods have been attempted to answer these questions. Since the early 16th century legislation on poverty enacted by the Parliament of England , poor relief has developed from being little more than a systematic means of punishment into a complex system of government-funded support and protection, especially following

1320-465: The council was to maintain GPs’ lists of patients and to receive practitioners’ claims for payment. It was headed by an administrator with managerial control only over the staff, not the practitioners. Each family practitioner committee had thirty members, eleven of which were appointed by the area health authority with which it was coterminous. Eight were appointed by the local medical committee , three by

1375-567: The creation in the 1940s of the welfare state . In the late 15th century, Parliament took action on the growing problem of poverty, focusing on punishing people for being " vagabonds " and for begging . In 1495, during the reign of King Henry VII , Parliament enacted the Vagabonds and Beggars Act 1494 . This provided for officers of the law to arrest and hold "all such vagabonds, idle and suspect persons living suspiciously and them so taken to set in stocks , there to remain three nights and to have none other sustenance but bread and water; and after

1430-659: The details after inspecting the German system. The medical profession and the British Medical Association were angry with the law, despite support from some prominent leaders such as Victor Horsley . Some critics on the right such as Hilaire Belloc considered the Act to be a manifestation of The Servile State , which Belloc criticised in his book of the same name. Collection of contributions began in July 1912, and payments on 15 January 1913. The bill

1485-428: The different classes of the poor. The sick, the elderly, and the disabled were to be issued with licences to beg. But those who were out of work and in search of employment were still not spared punishment. Throughout the 16th century, a fear of social unrest was the primary motive for much legislation that was passed by Parliament. This fear of social unrest carried into the reign of Edward VI . A new level of punishment

1540-535: The elderly, and the mentally and physically handicapped , were seen to be deserving, whereas those who were physically able but were too lazy to work were considered as "idle" and were seen as of bad moral character, and thus undeserving of help. Most poor relief in the 17th century came from voluntary charity which mostly was in the form of food and clothing. Parishes distributed land and animals. Institutionalized charities offered loans to help craftsmen to alms houses and hospitals. The Poor Relief Act 1597 provided

1595-734: The end of Henry VII 's reign (1509)". The population was growing faster than the economy's ability to provide employment opportunities. The problem was made worse because during the English Reformation , Henry VIII severed the ecclesiastical governance of his kingdoms of England and Ireland and made himself the Supreme Head of the Church of England . This involved the Dissolution of the Monasteries in England and Wales:

1650-530: The end of the 18th century and during the early 19th century. The system was named after a 1795 meeting at the Pelican Inn in Speenhamland, Berkshire , where a number of local magistrates devised the system as a means to alleviate the distress caused by high grain prices. The increase in the price of grain most probably occurred as a result of a poor harvest in the years 1795–96, though at the time this

1705-632: The farmers. Following the onset of the Industrial Revolution , in 1834 the Parliament of the United Kingdom revised the Poor Relief Act 1601 after studying the conditions found in 1832. Over the next decade they began phasing out outdoor relief and pushing the paupers towards indoor relief . The differences between the two was that outdoor relief was a monetary contribution to the needy, whereas indoor relief meant

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1760-606: The first complete code of poor relief, established overseers of the poor and was later amended by the Poor Relief Act 1601 , which was one of the longest-lasting achievements of her reign, left unaltered until 1834. This law made each parish responsible for supporting the legitimately needy in their community. It taxed wealthier citizens of the country to provide basic shelter, food and clothing, though they were not obligated to provide for those outside of their community. Parishes responsible for their own community caused problems because some were more generous than others. This caused

1815-443: The flaws of the 1662 act, the Poor Relief Act 1691 came into effect such that it presented methods by which people could gain settlement in new locations. Such methods included "owning or renting property above a certain value or paying parish rates, but also by completing a legal apprenticeship or a one-year service while unmarried, or by serving a public office" for that identical length of time. The main points of this system were

1870-492: The following: During the 16th and 17th centuries, the population of England nearly doubled. Capitalism in the agricultural and manufacturing arenas started to emerge, and trade abroad significantly increased. Despite this flourishing of expansion, sufficient employment rates had yet to be attained by the late 1600s. The population increased at alarming rates, outpacing the increase in productivity, which resulted inevitably in inflation. Concurrently, wages decreased, declining to

1925-547: The form of establishing more workhouses as indoor relief. Some people argue that as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was in its prime as an empire , it could have given more aid in the form of money, food or rent subsidies. In other parts of the United Kingdom, amendments to and adoptions of poor laws came in and around the same time. In Scotland, for example, the Poor Law (Scotland) Act 1845 revised

1980-404: The government with 7 O'Brienites against it. It became law on 16 December 1911, and went into effect on 1 July 1912. The National Insurance Act Part I provided for a National Insurance scheme with provision of medical benefits. All workers who earned under £160 a year had to pay 4 pence a week to the scheme; the employer paid 3 pence, and general taxation paid 2 pence (Lloyd George called it

2035-493: The individual was sent to one of the workhouses. Following the reformation of the Poor Laws in 1834, Ireland experienced a severe potato blight that lasted from 1845 to 1849 and killed an estimated 1.5 million people. The effects of the famine lasted until 1851. During this period the people of Ireland lost much land and many jobs, and appealed to the Westminster Parliament for aid. This aid generally came in

2090-486: The need for the involvement of the Justices, law enforcement was streamlined. Starting as early as 1590, public authorities began to take a more selective approach to supporting the poor. Those who were considered to be legitimately needy, sometimes called the "deserving poor" or "worthy poor", were allowed assistance, while those who were idle were not. People incapable of providing for themselves, such as young orphans ,

2145-623: The new appointees came from outside the NHS, nearly all from industry or the armed forces. The functions of the FHSAs were later subsumed into primary care trusts . The Family Health Services Appeal Authority was established to hear appeals and applications resulting from decisions made about the inclusion of patients and practitioners in lists. It was abolished in 2005. National Insurance Act 1911 The National Insurance Act 1911 ( 1 & 2 Geo. 5 . c. 55) created National Insurance , originally

2200-412: The peace were authorized to provide any town which needed it with a stock of flax , hemp , or other materials on which paupers could be employed and to erect a " house of correction " in every county for the punishment of those who refused work. This was the first time Parliament had attempted to provide labour to individuals as a means to combat the increasing numbers of "vagabonds". Two years after

2255-483: The poor to migrate to other parishes that were not their own. In order to counteract this problem, the Poor Relief Act 1662 , also known as the Settlement Act, was implemented. This created many sojourners, people who resided in different settlements that were not their legal one. The Settlement Act allowed such people to be forcefully removed, and garnered a negative reaction from the population. In order to fix

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2310-435: The poor who were considered to belong to the parish. These overseers were to 'gently ask' for donations for poor relief; refusal would ultimately result in a meeting with the local bishop , who would 'induce and persuade' the recalcitrant parishioners. However, at times even such a meeting with the bishop would often fail to achieve its object. Sensing that voluntary donation was ineffective, Parliament passed new legislation,

2365-407: The proposal, but Lloyd George convinced most of them to support it. The friendly societies and trade unions were given a major role in administering health insurance. Covered workers outside those agencies dealt with the local post office. The government picked up responsibility for the basic benefits that the unions and societies had promised, thus greatly helping their financial reserves. The Act

2420-416: The said three days and three nights, to be had out and set at large and to be commanded to avoid the town." As historian Mark Rathbone has discussed in his article "Vagabond!", this act of Parliament relied on a very loose definition of a vagabond and did not make any distinction between those who were simply unemployed and looking for employment and those who chose to live the life of a vagabond. In addition,

2475-511: The scheme were to be compulsory and taken by the employer before the workers' salary was paid. Amended by National Insurance Act 1913 c. 37, draft regulations were published in November 1913. Poor Law In English and British history, poor relief refers to government and ecclesiastical action to relieve poverty . Over the centuries, various authorities have needed to decide whose poverty deserves relief and also who should bear

2530-596: The societies. The 1911 Act only allowed Approved Societies to collect the contributions of their members; they could not keep the money, but had to forward it to the National Insurance Fund. The societies' own expenditure, such as the cost of treatment for their members, would be reimbursed by the Fund, on a six-monthly basis. The government did not reimburse any "improper" payments, such as "treatments" that did not comply with government regulations, or corrupt payments. Any organisation could become an Approved Society, as long as it

2585-487: Was based on actuarial principles, and it was planned that it would be funded by fixed payments from workers, employers, and taxpayers. It made no provision for dependants. Part II worked in a similar way to Part I. The worker gave 2 1 ⁄ 2 d (i.e pre-decimal pence) per week while employed, the employer 2 1 ⁄ 2 d, and the taxpayer 3d. After one week of unemployment, the worker would start to be eligible to receive 7 shillings (i.e. 84d) per week for up to 15 weeks in

2640-429: Was established by the Vagabonds Act 1572 . After determining the amount of funds needed to provide for the poor of each parish, justices of the peace were granted the authority to determine the amount of the donation from each parish's more wealthy property-owners. This act finally turned these donations into what was effectively a local tax. In addition to creating these new imposed taxes, the Vagabonds Act 1572 created

2695-526: Was introduced by Lloyd George to Parliament on 4 May 1911. On the Third Reading, the government was victorious by a huge majority. Most Unionists abstained, although 11 voted against the bill and 9 in favour of it, while the Labour Party was also split, with 32 Labour MPs supporting the government and 5 from the party's socialistic wing voting against. In addition, 58 'Redmonite' Irish voted with

2750-469: Was introduced in the Duke of Somerset's Vagabonds Act 1547 . "Two years' servitude and branding with a 'V' was the penalty for the first offense, and attempts to run away were to be punished by lifelong slavery and, there for a second time, execution." However, "there is no evidence that the Act was enforced." In 1550 these punishments were revised in a new act that was passed. The Vagabonds Act 1549 makes

2805-611: Was psychologically important, as it removed the need for unemployed workers to rely on the stigmatised social welfare provisions of the Poor Law . This hastened the end of the Poor Law as a social welfare provider: the Poor Law Unions were abolished in 1929, and the administration of poor relief was transferred to the counties and county boroughs. Key figures in the implementation of the Act included Robert Laurie Morant and especially economist William Braithwaite, who drafted

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2860-637: Was registered under the Act, and complied with the Act's obligations, including to operate on a not-for-profit basis. As well as societies created by the trade unions and friendly societies , commercial insurers also established Approved Societies, such as the National Amalgamated Approved Society (created by Pearl Assurance and others); the largest Approved Societies were the four operated by Prudential , which collectively looked after 4.3 million members. Many Approved Societies were nominally profitable, contributing more to

2915-572: Was still largely based on subsistence farming , the collection of cash contributions was impractical. The Highlands and Islands Medical Service was established in the crofting counties on a non-contributory basis in 1913. Though the fund was held centrally, and the obligation to pay into it was a nationally imposed one, access to the scheme was via "Approved Societies", who collected the contributions, paid out for treatment, and provided day-to-day administration. A worker could choose which Approved Society to belong to; this stimulated competition between

2970-423: Was subject to great debate. Many blamed middlemen and hoarders as the ultimate architects of the shortage. The authorities at Speenhamland approved a means-tested sliding scale of wage supplements in order to mitigate the worst effects of rural poverty. Families were paid extra to top up wages to a set level according to a table. This level varied according to the number of children and the price of bread. In 1834,

3025-460: Was the first time that Parliament had passed legislation which began to distinguish between different categories of vagabonds. " Peddlers , tinkers , workmen on strike , fortune tellers , and minstrels " were not spared these gruesome acts of deterrence. This law punished all able bodied men "without land or master" who would neither accept employment nor explain the source of their livelihood. In this newly established definition of what constituted

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