Britain Transformed

(1918-79)
Political Economic Welfare Industrial Healthcare Education Society Culture
Landscape Landscape Reforms Relations Reforms Reforms & Sport

1910s & 20s

Political Decline of the Liberal Party
Landscape - Defence of the Realm Act (1914): Gave the government powers over conscription, rationing
and allowed them to request land or buildings for the war effort. Many liberals were anxious
about the Act branding it “illiberal”, but it was supported by David Lloyd George who
replaced Henry Asquith as Prime Minister in 1916.
- Lloyd George abandoned his traditional Laissez Faire beliefs in exchange for government
control over the economy – wanted to win the war at all costs.
- Maurice Debate – further cemented the split in the Liberal Party. General Maurice wrote an
open letter in several British newspapers accusing Lloyd George of lying to the House of
Commons concerning how many troops were on the Western Front – Asquith demanded an
inquiry and challenged Lloyd George to become PM – he failed.
- Representation of the People Act (1918): tripled the size of the electorate; estimated the
Labour Party benefited most from this increase, although some historians dispute this.
- Liberal-Conservative coalition: Lloyd George and the Conservatives entered into a khaki
election in 1918 as a “coupon” pledging not to stand candidates against each other. The
Tories needed DLG’s popular image, whilst he needed conservative support to achieve a
parliamentary majority. In the ‘Coupon Election’, the coalition won handsomely whilst the
Asquith (independent) Liberals won only 28 seats (Asquith lost his own).
- Cash for honours: Emerged in 1922 that Lloyd George was selling honours (peerages and
knighthoods) in exchange for “party donations”. He refused to share these funds with the party
unless they submitted to his demands. The scandal damaged his credibility and that of the
party.
- Chanak Incident: Turkey tried to push Greek forces out of Turkey to restore rule over its former
territories. Lloyd George and Churchill called for war, but public opinion did not support this.
The conservatives in the coalition saw Lloyd George as a war monger- this led to the Carlton
Club Meeting.
- Carlton Club Meeting: Formal meeting (1922) in which conservative MPs decided to end their
coalition with David Lloyd George. In the following election the Liberals share of the vote fell
12%.

Rise of the Labour Party

▪ Formed in 1900 from the TUC – close ties with the Trade Unions
▪ Working class representation made easier – MPs were granted a wage in 1911
- Party Unity: Effective leadership of Arthur Henderson – the first Labour leader to gain
representation at cabinet level. The party also had a strong working-class identity (formed
from the TUC)
- Party Organisation: As a consequence of union backing, Labour could run a nationally funded
political machine. In 1924, all but 19 constituencies had a local Labour branch.
- Changes to the Voting system: Representation of the People Act tripled the size of the
electorate (many swayed towards Labour). Internal organisation allowed more candidates to
stand whilst the 1918 election was heavily influenced by patriotism.
 - Breaking away from Liberal Influence: Before 1914 there were close links between the two
parties. In 1914 Labour began to establish a separate identity – supporting nationalisation. In
the 1923 Election, Labour capitalised on the splits in the Liberal Party.

Conservative Dominance
- Tories win the 1924 Election with a healthy majority after abandoning the coalition with the
Liberals and a short spell of Labour government (1923-24)
- Changes in the electoral system:
Plural Voting – university students and businessmen could vote in their home as well as
business/university constituency (both typically voted conservative).
Unevenness of First Past the Post – took on average 16,000 votes to elect a Tory but 30,000 for a
Labour MP.
Redrawing of Constituency boundaries – gave middle class suburbs more representation
(typically voted Conservative)
Irish Free State – When Ireland declared independence the Liberals lost the support of 80
Nationalist MPs; the Conservatives continued to receive the support of 10 (on average)
Northern Irish MPs.
- Divisions in the opposition parties: In 1931 many right-wing Liberals form the ‘National Liberals’
which merge with the Conservatives. Labour found it difficult to establish themselves outside
the industrial heartlands and their 1931 government collapsed after arguments concerning
spending cuts.
- Party Organisation: Developed a true national structure with local branches and political
volunteers (similar to Labour). There leader Stanley Baldwin had a ‘man of the people’ identity.
In 1924 internal organisation developed with the creation of the ‘Conservative Research
Department’ – responsible for campaigns and speech writing etc.
- The party’s branding: ‘One nation conservative’ image: attracted working-class support; had
a reputation for economic competence.

Economic Economic legacy of WW1

Landscape - Loss of trade: 20% of British ships were sunk during WW1 and therefore unable to trade
following the war. Britain’s rivals the US and Japan took over many British markets. Britain was
also unable to trade with many nations she was at war with, as many became more
self-sufficient and continued this practice once the war had ended.
- Debt: The war cost Britain £3.25 billion with debts of £8 billion by 1920. Wartime debts rose to
160% of income by 1924.
- Value of the pound: Britain was forced to abandon the Gold Standard in 1914, in order to print
enough money to cover the costs of war. This resulted in a rise in inflation.
- Inflation: rose to 25% by 1918
- Technological development: medicine, transport and radio, at-large. Many of France and
Germany’s factories were destroyed causing them to construct new more modern ones.
Britain fell behind in industry and in 1918 Germany was producing twice as much steel as
Britain.
- 900,000 men killed: many made up the British workforce.

Economic Pattern
- 1919-20: Short post-war boom because of an increased demand for goods
- 1920-21: a severe recession – inflation at 25%

Failed economic policies

- Interest rates: government increased interest rates to curb inflation but rather this curbed
economic growth as it made it more expensive for business to borrow and invest
- Taxes and spending: Prime Minister Lloyd George appointed a ‘Commission of National
Expenditure’. In response £24 million was cut from housing, health and education whilst £80
 million was cut from defence (this was known as the Geddes Axe, 1922). Led to growing
unemployment (never fell below 1 million during the inter-war period)
- Protectionism: Introduced tariffs on foreign goods to “protect” British industry. However, this led
to retaliatory tariffs which hampered international trade. Attributed to unemployment in
shipbuilding (60%) and Iron and Steel industries (49%).

Welfare Unemployment
Reforms Problems with the National insurance scheme: Undermined by the War as over 3.5 million returning
troops were not eligible for the benefits, this was because they had not worked in one of the 6
industries or had not made sufficient contributions. The wartime coalition recognised that reform was
needed.
‘Out of Work Donation’ (1918-20): Short-term solution was to offer benefits in the name of an ‘out of
work donation’. It was offered to returning troops and the civilian population until they found work.
Paid for through taxes and borrowing – there were no individual donations.
🡺 Established 2 precedents: government took responsibility for helping the unemployed and
providing money for family dependents.

1920, Unemployment Insurance Act: Developed to offer a longer-term solution; 2/3 of workers were
eligible to claim insurance. The act was created just when the post-war slump was setting in. Rather
than creating a self-funding system, the eligible claimant quickly drained the funds. By 1921, the
government had to make ‘extended’ payments – meant to be paid for through future employment
but in reality, were dole payments disguised as insurance. A means test was introduced in March 1921;
3 million claims were rejected as a result.
1929, Local Government Act: County and Borough Councils had to establish Public Assistance
Committees (PAC’s); they were centrally funded. In response to the financial crisis of 1931, means
testing was introduced; claimants combined household income was thoroughly investigated to judge
eligibility.
1934, Unemployment Act:
🡺 Part 1 of the Act: It provided 26 weeks of benefit payments to the 14.5 million who paid into
the scheme.
🡺 Part 2 of the Act: Created a National Unemployed Assistance Board (UAB) to help those with
no entitlement to insurance; by 1937 UAB had assisted 1 million people on a means tested
basis.

By this point the Poor Law only applied to a few groups of people, such as widows who were not
eligible for a pension.

Pensions
1908 Pensions Act: State pensions were introduced. Hugely popular with eligible – over 70s. However,
met with criticism that they did not support the widows and children of the deceased.
1925 Widows’, Orphans and Old Age Contributory Pensions Act: Brought in by Neville Chamberlain –
Minister for Health (would later serve as Prime Minister). Addressed criticisms of the 1908 Pensions Act -
1. Provided a pension of 10 shillings per week for those aged 65-70 and provided for widows, their
children and orphans.
2. Funded by compulsory contribution rather than through taxation.
3. Initially unpopular with Labour – they thought it penalised the poor; though economic
conditions and an aging population generally led to its acceptance.
4. Self-employed workers of both sexes were allowed to join the scheme in 1937.

Housing
Why was reform needed?
- Concern that slums encouraged disease and crime
- Government had promised ‘homes fit for heroes’

1919: Housing and Town Planning Act: Empowered local authorities to used central funds to meet
housing needs. Estimated that 600,000 houses would need to be built to meet demand. Only 213,000
were built before the Geddes Axe (refer to 1B); shortfall of 822,000 in 1923.
 Tory and Labour Housing Acts of 1923 and 1924, respectively: sought to use subsidies to encourage the
construction of private and state-owned housing.

Industrial Key changes during the interwar period

Relations - Much of the traditional industry was still rooted in Victorian Britain
- Iron and Coal were the key industries; by the interwar period, they were outdated,
underinvested and could not compete with foreign competition.
- 1919 Sankey Commission recommended continued government ownership of the mines
following WW1, but they were returned to private ownership in 1921 and wages began to fall.
- Foreign competition took over in industry such as textiles, following The Great War.
- Period saw the rise in modern industry – chemicals and the motor industry (centred around
London and the South East).
-
What was the impact of these changes?
- The Older industries lost 1/3 of their workforce – unemployment was 3 million in 1932
- Electrical appliance industries increased their workforce by 250%
- The service industries boomed
- The building industry expanded 40%

1926 General Strike

- March 1926: Samuel Commission recommended reconstruction of coal industry, but also a
pay cut for miners.
- Miners rejected the proposal with the slogan ‘not a minute off the day, not a penny off the
day’.
- They called for TUC support in a strike
- TUC entered talks with the government, however on May 2nd Baldwin called off talks and
declared a State of Emergency.
- May 3rd: 3 million workers went on strike
- 9 days later the strike was over and workers were left to strike on their own for 6 months without
success.

Why did the strike fall?

- Workers didn’t properly coordinate their efforts; the government had been preparing since
1925. They had created the Organisation for the Maintenance of Supplies, a network of
volunteers who stepped in to do essential jobs not done by striking workers.
- Churchill was put in charge of the government newspaper – The British Gazette – making it
clear the government would not be held hostage to strike action.
- TUC limited violence during the strike; made it easier for the government to handle.
- Expensive for the TUC: cost £4m of its £12.5m strike fund
- A liberal politician offered the TUC an unofficial settlement. Promising a National Wage Board
and no wage cuts. The TUC accepted this offer and called the strike off.

Trade Disputes Act: Created after the failure of the General Strike. It made sympathetic strikes illegal.
Therefore the TUC abandoned General Strike. Many men, as a consequence, became disillusioned
with unions – TUC membership sank to its lowest ever in 1932.
Healthcare Before 1911
Reforms - Access to healthcare depended on wealth
- Workhouse infirmaries – could treat poor – if did not exist they had to rely on friendly societies
- Friendly societies: offered some affordable health insurance schemes
- Would take regular small payment then a lump sum when people needed financial assistance
- Unregulated and could go bankrupt
- 1911, National Insurance Act: Introduced by Liberal Government. Granted compulsory health
insurance for low paid workers (less than £160 per year). Employer, employee and government
paid into the scheme. However, the Acr covered only 6 industries.
 The Interwar years
- A consensus over healthcare: the government should play a greater role in healthcare –
develop a network of hospitals.
- 1919, Ministry of Health: War recruitment conveyed poor standard of health – 40% unfit for
combat – ministry lacked authority to reform the healthcare system
- Medical services still controlled by other authorities
- Insurance companies: Growth post WW1 – controlled 75% of the market
- ‘Approved Societies’ – would collect subscriptions and pay costs
- Hospital treatment: best were teaching hospitals (only 12 in London and 10 in provinces)
- Voluntary hospitals: smaller and less financially secure – end of 1930’s most in serious financial
trouble – 1,100 voluntary hospitals
- 1929, Local Government Act: Poor Law hospitals were converted to Local Hospitals. More
powers were granted to local government in managing healthcare and specialist teaching
hospitals were established.

Education 1918 ‘Fisher’ Education Act

Reforms - Widen access to education
- Raise school leaving age to 14
- Nursery provided
- Fees scrapped for elementary school

1926 Haddow Report

- Recommended tripartite system (grammar, modern, technical)
- Nothing changed until 1944 Butler Act

Society Upper class

- Hugely Wealthy: owned vast amounts of land; privately educated
- ‘The season’: country pursuits within seasons (e.g. hunting)
- Royal ascot, rowing, sailing – clear sense of identity
- WW1
- Huge impact:13% men died, 20% of Old Etonians died – often served as officers (high mortality
rate)
- Cost of War: rise in income tax and death duties – estates over 2 million – increase of 40%
duties
- Tax on incomes over £2500: tax increased by over 50% - harder to pay for country estates – led
to 25% of all gentry land being sold off

Middle Class
- Distinguished themselves from the working class through leisure pursuits – saw themselves as
uprising and moral; looked down on working classes.
- Home ownership became a defining characteristic
- Middle class thought distinction between them and working class was eroding
- False perception: working class wages rising and middle class stagnated
- Wartime inflation: impacted middle class savings and income
- Rise of Middle-Class Jobs
- 34% growth in commercial and financial job (1911-1921)
- Growth in STEM employment
- More female employment
- Workers in such jobs saw themselves as modern, progressive and financially responsible

Working Class
- Comprised of skilled workers and unskilled labourers – manual jobs – often irregular wages

WW1
 - Smaller percentage fought in war. Many held ‘reserved occupations’ such as mining which
were deemed essential to the war effort.
- Poor health: 18% classed as too sickly for combat
- Between 1915 – 1918 trade union membership doubled; protected the right and wages of
working class.

Women
- 1918 Representation of the People Act: women over 30 could vote
- 1928 – extended to all women; led to political advancement
- 1918 election: only 17 women stood as candidates – 1 won
- Highest number of female MPs in 1931
- Women’s group became split over feminist issues
- Party’s did not want to risk female candidate in safe seats

Real Income
- Real income: this considers the effect of inflation.
- Severe Recession (1921): wages for the poor fell until 1934

However, living standards continued to improve, because:

- Prices fell faster than wages
- An increase in the use of contraception meant families shrank. (2.9 children in 1920 compared
with 4.6 in 1880).
- Real cost of living fell by 1/3 between 1920 and 1938
- Average wages doubled during WW2

Housing
- 4 million homes built during the inter-war period
- Homeowners: 10% in 1914, 32% in 1938
- Effect of the Blitz: 3.5 million homes were bombed; 60 million changes of address
- 1946 ‘New Towns Act’

Health and Diet

- 700,000 died and 1.7 million were injured during the War
- By 1921: Over 1m men were receiving disability pensions.
- WW1 – 40% of men exposed as unfit for combat
- Diets improved due to rationing
- By 1922 infant mortality had halved from 1900
- More people were living beyond 65.
- Regional Variations: infant mortality was x5 in Wales compared with Kensington.
- Carers for evacuated children were shocked by their poor diet.
- Rationing: ‘Dig for Victory’ campaign encouraged people to grow their own vegetables.
- Rationing ended in 1954.

Consumption
- Car ownership was more common in the South East
- 1920: 730,000 people had electricity. In 1938 this rose to 9 million. By 1961, 96% of homes had
electricity.
- 1926 ‘Electricity Supply Act’ created the National Grid
- ¼ of consumer spending was controlled by rationing.

Culture Radio
& Sport - National and Regional programmes – replaced with the Home Service
- Prevent enemy aircraft using reginal radio as navigation
- Programmes like workers’ Playtime – aimed to boost morale of factory workers
 - News and speech-based entertainment

Music
- Swing and bop

1930s
Political Collapse of the Labour Government
Landscape - During the second Labour government (1929-31) the party had to make harsh economic
decisions, many of which effected the poor.
- 1931 Budget: Britain needed loans from the USA and France, however international bankers
demanded a balanced budget in exchange for loans. This led to the Labour Leadership
seeking cuts in several government departments including 10% to unemployment benefit.
- Resignation: In August 1931, the party resigned from government and moves were taken to
expel MacDonald (Prime Minister) and Snowden (Chancellor).

Formation of the National Government

- MacDonald wishes to resign but King George V and the Conservative Party wanted him to
continue.
- King George appealed to his patriotic duty whilst the conservatives where happy for
MacDonald to face the blame for difficult economic decisions.
- As a result, MacDonald announced he would continue as Prime Minister leading a ‘national
government’ to face the emergency.
- In the October 1931 Election the National Government won a landslide victory.

Failure of extremism
British Union of Fascists (BUF):
- Oswald Mosley forms the BUF in 1932 with the aim of emulating Mussolini style leadership
- BUF was racist and anti-Semitic
- Party founded by Mosley himself and some wealthy aristocrats
- 50,000 members in the 1930s
- October 1936: ‘Battle of Cable Street’: BUF march through East London (home to many Jews
and Irish immigrants) turned into a violent clash.
- WW2 made BUF even more unpopular; Mosley was imprisoned for three years until 1943 and
the BUF was banned.

The Communist Party of Great Britain

- Far left, more successful than Mosley
- CPGB gained one MP in 1924 and in 1935
- However, only gained a maximum of 0.4% of the popular vote; British electorate rejected
communism
- Strength of Labour prevented Communism from taking off
- CPGB used ‘entryism’ – tried to infiltrate the Labour Party and steer their ideas to the left
(Labour banned CPGB members from joining Labour to prevent this).
- They gain some support until Russia helps to defeat Nazi Germany.

Economic *Branded ‘The Hungry Thirties’ because of depression and unemployment*

Landscape Uneven Depression: North Vs South
1. Areas hit hardest were those that centred on the staple industries, such as coal in the North
and in South Wales, as well as shipbuilding in Scotland – in Jarrow every man was made
redundant as all the staple industries closed.
 2. Unemployment rose to 2.5 million (25% of the workforce), but it was higher in the North of
Britain.
3. The depression also lowered productivity for the whole country and so demand for products
fell.
4. However, areas such as London and the South East remained prosperous and consumer
industries boomed.

Devaluation of the pound (1931)

- Depression led to a fall in exports by 50%
- Unemployment rose to 2.5 million by 1933
- The government cut spending and maintained high interest rates to preserve the value of the
pound.
- The policy divided the Labour government, who resigned, and the National Government was
formed.
- The National Government removed the pound from the Gold Standard and devalued the
pound ($4.80 to $3.40)
- This led to a quicker recovery than experienced in other countries

The key features of the recovery

1. Unemployment fell from 17% to 8.5% between 1932 and 1937
2. Interest rates were cut from 6% to 2% leading to greater borrowing – ‘Cheap Money’
3. Government borrowing was cut by 1.5%
4. Boom in mortgages and house building – triggered by greater borrowing
5. Industrial production rose by 46%

Welfare Housing
Reforms Labour Housing Act (1930): encouraged a great deal of home building; improved housing in large
cities
4 million homes were built in total; 1 million by the private sector. Between 1924 and 1939, 20 ‘cottage
estates’ built outside London; suburbs connected by rail. Home building not only led to indoor
plumbing (prevent disease) but also a greater demand for domestic goods, such as furniture, further
stimulating the economy.
Industrial Great Depression and Industrial Relations
Relations - Unemployment rose to 3 million by 1932. Much of this was long-term, by 1932 16.4% of the
unemployed had been so for over a year.
- Mass unemployment led to a fall in Trade Union membership by almost 50% - from 8 million in
1922 to 4.5 million in 1932.
- Government tended to support the employer in trade disputes. Although, the government
tried to supply support for the unemployed, they did not have the resources to do this.
- By 1939, traditional heavy industry was in terminal decline and working conditions remained
poverty stricken.

Healthcare State of healthcare

Reforms - By 1937 18 million workers covered by State health insurance
- Access to GPs: first resort for medical care – patients had to pay for consolations and
medicine. This meant GPs were unevenly distributed with more working in wealthier areas
- NHS established: GPs shocked that people were putting up with serious problems due to lack
of money
- GPs treated more people through National Insurance Scheme; Less than half the population
had national insurance
- By 1939: more groups advocating for an NHS

Society Upper Class

- Many country homes bought by the National Trust
- 1937 Country Houses Scheme: Allowed to live rent-free for 2 generations – if open house at
least 60 days a year to public
- Country house lifestyle remained ultimate goal for most rich Britons
 Middle Class
- Home Ownership
- Became defining feature – new middle class – who bought homes since 1920
- By 1939 – 60% middle class were home owners (compared to 20% working class)
- Suburban lifestyle – defined the middle class

Working Class
- Trade Unions
- Suffered loss in the interwar period – gained momentum after WW2
- Aided the rise of the Labour Party

Culture Holidays
& Sport - Seaside visits
- Class divisions - better off go to Tynemouth rather than Whitely Bay
- Holiday industry grew rapidly: Blackpool had 2 million visitors each year
- Youth Hostel Association and Rambled Association experience increased membership - more
Britons want to get out of the city
- Butlin’s launched in 1937: by 1939 there are 20 000 holiday camps in Britain, who cater for 30
000 visitors a week- poorer families could go away for the first time

Planes
- WW1: rapid improvement in design of planes
- 1918: flight a commercially viable option for travel
- Flight expensive in interwar years - only rich could afford - plane companies had to be propped up
by the state:
- 1924 Imperial Airways subsidised by the government to promote image of British power
- 1935 British airways starts as a private company, had to be rescued by state
- Rapid growth in air transport after WW2 due to improvement in design, safety and the economy-
allowed Britons to enjoy holidays abroad

Trains
- WW1: state takes control of railways
- 1921 Railway Act: forces all rail companies to merge into 4
- Growth of railways encouraged ribbon development before cars and buses
- ‘Metro land’: a series of suburbs north of London linked to the city centre by the Metropolitan railway
- 1948 ‘big four’ merged into the nationalised British Railway (denationalised in 1994-97)

1940s
Political The final years of the National Government then begins the Post-War Consensus (1945-79)
Landscape The post-war consensus can be characterised as a belief in:
1. Keynesian economics
2. A mixed economy
3. Nationalisation of major industry
4. The National Health Service
5. Commitment to full employment
6. A welfare state in Britain; social security and national insurance
7. Introduction of nuclear weapons

How did WW2 lead to consensus politics?

- The National Government proved the ministers from rival parties could work together and that
a broad agreement on key policies could be reached.
- Success of collectivism: an approach where certain problems are tackled by taking away
some rights for the common good.
- The war changed the role of government: Emergency Powers Act, for example
 - Shift from a free market economy to a more mixed one where government used rationing,
conscription and censorship, all in a bid to engage Britain in a total war. 1/3 of citizens were
taking in war related work.
- Beveridge Report, 1942: Outlined his vision for a welfare state that could care from someone
from ‘cradle to grave’; the report sold 635,000 copies.

Why did Labour win a landslide in the 1945 General Election?

- Leadership: Atlee was seen a ‘man of the people’. Although, Churchill led the nation through
WW2, there was concern over whether he could lead the nation during peacetime. Atlee had
led the Home Front during the War and showed himself as a capable leader.
- Campaigns: Labour broke off the wartime coalition after the war, to force a General Election.
Churchill was confident in winning the campaign ‘let’s finish the job’ election slogan.
- Policies: Labour promised to implement the policies of the highly popular Beveridge Report, in
comparison the Conservatives did not have a clear post-war agenda.
- Public Mood: the public were desperate for change after nearly six years of war; they
associated the Tories with the high unemployment of the 1920s and 30s.

Economic WW2 and Economic Policy

Landscape - Churchill expanded the government’s role in the wartime economy, e.g. created several
ministries which had a specific role in economic management
- Government also controlled prices through controlling production levels
- National Government transformed Britain into a managed economy – rationing and
conscription and registration for employment was made compulsory in 1941.
- During the war years, half the government spending was on military
- After the war military spending continued to be a government priority. By 1951 over 10% of
GDP – 30% of expenditure – was on military.

Economic aid during the 1940s

- By December 1940, Britain's cash reserves were spent
- Churchill secured the Lend-Lease Agreement. This allowed the USA to supply Britain and debts
would be repaid after the War.
- This led to supplies being brought to Britain on ‘Liberty ships’
- Britain was also a recipient of £6 billion of Marshall Aid from 1948

Impact of Austerity
- 1945: Britain had £4 billion worth of debt to the USA and with an additional loan in 1945, it
would cost Britain just £70 million a day to finance the debt.
- There was a £700 million deficit

Attlee government embarked upon a series of austerity measures –

- Cuts in government spending
- Controlling private spending
- Rationing of goods
- Unpopular: with the British public, particularly Trade Unions who were instructed to take a
wage freeze or expect legal pay restraints.

Welfare - Led to a wide consensus over welfare; Beveridge Report, 1942

Reforms

Why did attitudes shift?

1. A total war had prompted universal solutions – it affected everyone
2. The sacrifices made during the war let to people expecting a just reward
3. The evacuation of children to the countryside conveyed the extent of inner-city poverty
4. The success of the state directed war economy led to confidence around government
intervention during peacetime.
 5. The war forced government to borrow and spend large sums of money in pursuit of victory.
Keynes's economic views had been proven to work.
6. The National Government showed a great deal of co-operation between the three main
parties.

The Beveridge Report

William Beveridge was a Liberal politician interested in Social Reform. In 1941 he was appointed to
head a government committee to investigation welfare provisions and recommend improvements.
Why was the report set up?
- Set up on Churchill’s request
- Partly to predict future developments
- Conservatives did not want a repeat of their broken promise ‘a home fit for heroes’ after WW1
- Clear feeling that the end of war, could bring about a better world.
Aims of the Beveridge Report
- Protections for all ‘from cradle to grave’
- Tackle the five giants of: want, disease, ignorance, squalor, idleness
- Beveridge wanted the provision of welfare to be centralised
- State welfare should be funded entirely through a compulsory single insurance payment –
under his scheme he wanted to avoid any means testing. He did not want any extra
government funding, as a Liberal he didn’t want the system to incentivise dependence on the
state.
The Report was extremely popular
- 635,000 copies were sold
- Helped by timing – wining the war made these findings seem realistic
- Copies were even dropped over Germany to encourage the civilian population to demand
peace.

Housing
- 700,000 homes had been destroyed during the war; 230,000 new homes were built each year
by 1948
- 1945-51: 1 million homes were constructed
- 4/5 of homes were built by the State

Industrial Employment
Relations Second World War led to more employment opportunities, like -
1. Move towards full employment as Britain engaged in a ‘total war’
2. More women in the work force
3. Better working conditions: improved healthcare, longer working hours but better wages.
4. Control of Employment Act: Semi-skilled workers could take on skilled jobs
5. Essential Work Order: Forced people to do particular jobs, 8.5 million issued by the government
– made it difficult for workers to be fired.
There was growth in the ‘white-collar’ industries because –
1. People, on average, had higher incomes which created a greater demand for more ‘luxury’
goods and services like meals out, which created more goods.
2. Government increased spending on healthcare and education, creating more public sector
jobs.
3. White-collar jobs were more difficult to mechanise and so weren’t lost to technological
advances.
4. The collapse of traditional industry
5. Better education

WW2 and industrial relations

- There were some strikes over wages and working hours
- Bevin, a trade unionist, became Minister for Labour in 1940
Bevin Boys – men conscripted to work in coal mines between 1943 and 1948.
- 1944 the government declared its long-term commitment to high employment
- War led to trade union inclusion in government decision making
Healthcare Overview
Reforms - Helped create a consensus on healthcare reform
- Emergency Medical Service (EMS) established 1939: provide first aid for air raid casualties; later
used to treat civilians and evacuated children- provided blueprint for NHS
- National Blood Transfusion Service created
- 1942 Beveridge Report: Called for an NHS

Creation of the NHS

- Bevan – Minister of health in the Attlee Government
- NHS: coordinated and centralised system – all voluntary hospitals nationalised

Opposition to the NHS

- Conservatives: voted against 21 times before act was passed – against state control
- Branded “medical Gestapo” and “medical Fuhrer” by Bevan
- Local Authorities: didn’t wish to lose control of their hospitals
- Doctors: argued working for state would undermine their clinical independence, feared
becoming civil servants (probably feared losing income)
- February 1948: 90% voted against working with NHS (75% public had signed up)
- Overcame opposition ‘stuffing their mouth with gold’ – fee for each patient (allowed to retain
private patients) – July 1948 – 90% joined

Education 1944 Butler Education Act

Reforms - Tripartite system (Grammar, Modern, Technical)
- Tackle giant of ignorance
- Leaving age increased to 15 - 1947
- Secondary education – free and universal
- 11+ exam
- Technical schools: mechanical and technical education – few established – high cost – 5%
- Modern Schools: General education – usually leave at 15 – certificate of Education – 70%
- Grammar Schools: Academic education – usually single sex – most stayed till 16 to do O-levels
– some took A-levels and went to university – 20%

Society Upper Class

- Rise of Labour
- Labour MPs were middle/working class
- Wealthy land owners made up 40% MPs in 1910 – 5% by 1945

Working Class
WW2
- United British people under total war – greater sense of unity
- Evacuation of poor children – greater degree of sympathy for poverty of working class
- Restored traditional working-class industry

Attlee’s Government
- 1948 National Assistance Act: boards to deal with hardship and poverty – no means testing
- Consumerism
- Should take advantage of mass leisure activities
- Dissolved boundaries between the working and middle class

A more sexual society?

FOR
- WW2 undermined traditional values – separate husbands and wives – divorce peaked 1947
- Number of post-war books – promoted liberal attitudes towards sex
 - Kinsley’s ‘sexual behaviour in the human female’ – undermined moral condemnation of sex
before marriage

AGAINST
- Mass observation – suggests women who had wartime affairs saw them as a product of
difficult circumstances - returned to husbands after war
- Divorce rate fell after 1947

Immigration
- During WW2 – many commonwealth citizens fought and died
- After war – labour government passed ‘British Nationality Act’ (1948) – all citizens of the
commonwealth were British Citizens
- 1947 – earliest immigrants came from India
- Problems
- Often found themselves in poorest accommodation in worst areas of big cities
- Liverpool – suffering from what government called “white flight” – traditional white population
vegan to move
- ‘The Colour Bar’ – employers would not hire immigrants, landlords would not rent to immigrants
- Trade unions – failed to support immigrant workers
- White trade unionist – often concerned their jobs would be taken by immigrants who work for
less
- Immigrants paid 28% less than white workers
- ‘Teddy Boy’ gangs of young – sought to intimidate immigrants

Women
- More jobs – traditionally male work (replaced men at war)
- Percentage of women who worked as engineer or in transport – 14% in 1939 to 33% in 1945
- Triggered desires beyond the home – 1950 edition of ‘Manchester Guardian’ – 50% housewives
bored
- Some forced out of work after WW2 – but change more permanent than WW1
- NHS – free healthcare for women
- Family Allowance Act – payments went to the mother

Culture Holidays during the War

& Sport - Gov. tried to prevent travel for leisure to free up roads
- Railway companies banned from running extra trains during peak holiday hours
- This was ineffective - seaside holidays like ‘Wakes Week’ and - ‘Trip Week’ continued
- Gov. tried (with some success) to promote ‘Holiday at Home’, but mainly accepted that
holidays were good for morale
- Wartime institutions like POW camps, military barracks and workers hostels would later be used
for holiday camps.

Car Ownership & impact

- Cheaper, smaller cars like the Austin Seven (1922) made motoring affordable for the middle
class
- Price of cars halved between 1924-1938
- Few restrictions on motorists helped to popularise cars - driving test only introduced in 1934
- Ministry of Transport spent lots of money to improve roads until the mid-1930s
- By 1939, 1.4 million jobs were dependant on the motor industry
- Ribbon development - houses and factories began to stretch out along roads
- More people were able to live in the suburbs - the populations of many cities (including
London) declined between 1911 and 1951
- More remote parts of the country were opened up to holiday makers - by 1971 cars make 63%
of holiday transportation
- Large car-parks built - first multi-storey car park open in Blackpool in 1939
 - Change in consumer habits - rise of the ‘weekly shop’ as people could load lots of groceries
and food into their car

Cinema
Popularity
- 1941 In which we serve (about the navy)
- 1943 the gentle sex (exploring wartime problems for women)
- Admissions peaked 1946 – 1.64 billion
- 1950 – average person went 28 times a year
Audience
- Typical cinemagoer – young, urban and working class (often female)
- 1946 – 69% of 16-19-year olds went once a week
- North went on average twice as much as south
- Encouraged the same type of film
- Saturday mornings – kid’s films with cheap seats
- British Cinema
- ‘Americanization’ – youths dressing like gangsters and girls like actresses
Radio
- Home, Light & Third
- Peacetime programming – after war
- The light Programme – 1945 – mix of comedies and soaps – most popular – held 1/3 od the 11
million daily listeners
- Daytime shows aimed at women at home
- Third Programme – highbrow classical music and dramas (3% of listeners)

Music
- Country, Western and blues

1950s
Political Why did Labour lose the 1951 Election?
Landscape - Taxation at a standard rate of 45% seemed too high for many
- Dissatisfaction with rationing
- Conservatives were seen as united whereas Labour were seen as divided on many issues, for
instance nuclear weapons and the Korean War
- 1947 Industrial Charter showed the Conservatives were willing to adapt and adopt consensus
policies.
-
How were the thirteen years of conservatism ‘golden years’?
- Huge achievements in education
- Leading member of the UN and NATO by 1964
- 1950s: Nearly 3& growth per annum
- Consumer spending rose by 45%
- Unemployment was below 2% for most of the period
- Wages rose by 72%
- Subsidies for British farming

How were the thirteen years of conservatism ‘wasted years’?

- Rival nations sent more people to university
- Economic growth low compared with rival nations
- Productivity was the lowest in Western Europe
- Application to join the EEC is vetoed
- Lack of investment in manufacturing
- Debate over grammar schools is not resolved.
Economic ‘Butskellism’ – colloquial phrase to describe the almost identical economic policies of Labour and the
Landscape Conservatives in the latter half of the post-war consensus.

The Illusion of affluence

- The 1950s was seen as a period of affluence; consumer spending rose 45%
- This was based on the increased ability for people to borrow money to spend.

But, this had consequences –

- Growth in inflation (around 4%)
- Increase in imports – led to an imbalance of payments

Stop-go economics
- The conservative governments of 1951-64 encouraged growth in consumer spending by
relaxing laws on borrowing and credit.
- However, when the problems of inflation arose, controls to slow the economy down, such as
tax rises and lowering wages, were put in place.
- This inconsistent approach was called ‘stop-go’ and demonstrated that controlling
unemployment and inflation was impossible.

Corporatism
- Britain was lagging behind its rivals in terms of economic growth
- Macmillan’s 1957-63 government decided to follow a corporatism policy – a managed
economy that united labour, management and government through corporations to plan
and achieve economic growth.

He established two departments named NEDDY and NICKY:

- NEDDY: The National Development Council Office – Aimed to produce reports for the future of
the economy. It recommended pay freezes and tax hikes (not popular)
- NICKY: The National Incomes Commission – Advisory board for unions and management.
Trade Unions refused to cooperate with it at all.
- This approach was met with criticism from among the Tory party and the media. It was met
with a quick U-turn.

Welfare (Refer to 1940s)

Reforms
Industrial - Full employment and high trade union membership
Relations - Deteriorating relationship between the Conservatives and the TUC
- Double the number of strikes compared with the previous decade
- Growing divide between the workers and the middle class

Healthcare Change
Reforms - New antibiotic drugs on NHS - decrease in Diphtheria – 156 in 1948 to 0 in 1967
- 1958: Mass immunisation programme launched – huge drop in polio – eradicated by 1984
- Child morality fell: 10% in 1926 to 1.5% in 1951 (of all deaths)
- Deaths in child birth: 1 per 1000 in 1948 to 0.18 per 1000 in 1970
- Increase in life expectancy – higher than rival nations

Rising Costs
- Bevan and Beveridge – believed NHS cost would fall after 1948 - one people became
healthier they would use the service less
- 1950 – 1970 – cost increased from 4.1% GDP to 4.8% - new treatments
- 1948: 1 antibiotic – 1963: 33
- Charges for spectacles and dentures (1951) – split in the party and Bevan resigned
- NHS being used for trivial problems
 - Between 1948 and 1979 – NHS staff doubled from ½ million to 1 million

Medical Advances
1953: Structure of DNA – research into genetic disorders
Society Growth of consumerism
- The number of homes with central heating rose from 5% in 1960 to 50% in 1977
- Growth in TV ownership- nearly every household had one by 1970
- Between 1947 and 1970 the amount of money spent on advertising tripled.
- 1957 Old Spice was advertised – more men used deodorant
- 1947: first supermarket opens; short lives
- 1950: Sainsburys opens in Croydon
- 1972: Ministry for Consumer Affairs set up to protect consumers.

Incomes
- Historian Eric Hobsbawm: 1950-70s was the ‘golden era’ of Western Capitalism
- Real disposable income rose 30% in 1950s, 22% in 1960s and 30% in 1970s.
- People spent more on housing, cars, durables and entertainment.
- 1950-70: Home ownership increased from 29% to over 50%, car ownership rose from 16% to
52%.
- Harold MacMillan: ‘Most of our people have never had it so good’.
- By 1965 the necessities of food and clothing absorbed only 30% of consumer spending.

A more Liberal Society?

- 1959 Obscene Publications Act – allowed serious works of art to use ‘obscene’ words and
imagery

Homosexuality?
AGAINST
- Mid 50’s – over 1000 men imprisoned for their sexuality

A more Sexual Society?

FOR
- 1959 obscene publication act

Immigration
- Immigrants began to arrive from west indies – ‘New commonwealth’
- NHS + other forms of nationalisation – demand for workers
- 1954: 9000 west indies came to Britain – rose to 66,000 by 1961
- Wages in Britain much higher than other parts of the Commonwealth – standard of living rising
very quickly
- Problem
- St Ann’s Area of Nottingham 1958 – crowd of up to 1000 black and white youth fought each
other – number of stabbings
- Notting hill (few days later) – gangs of 300-400 white men armed with weapons attacked local
black people and their homes
- Sparked by a Teddy boy attack on a white woman who had a black partner
- 140 arrested – concerns that police had been too slow to act
- After – 3% immigrant population returned to Caribbean – Caribbean governments made
formal complaints about British government housing and prejudiced policing

Culture Cinema
& Sport - Content
- 1959 Obscene Publications act
- 1968 theatre act

Music
- 1955 film ‘Black Board Jungle’ – arrival of rock’n’roll
- Elvis Presley – king of rock – sexual, wild music
- British companies – responded with ‘safer artists’ – Cliff Richard
- - Rock’n’roll – coincided with birth of the teenager – disposable income

1960s & 70s

Political Post-War Consensus ends in 1979 with the election of Margaret Thatcher as Prime Minister
Landscape
Economic ‘Dash for growth’
Landscape - Launched in 1963, after Tories abandon corporatism
- It was a demand management strategy based on the idea that injecting high levels of
demand into the economy for a sustained period would stimulate investment, raise
productivity and thus enable the expansion to becoming self-sustaining.
- The policy was a failure: a higher demand just led to more imported goods and a massive
balance of payments deficit.

Stagflation
- By 1964, the key economic problem was stagflation (which was supposed to be impossible
under Keynesian policy)

The key causes of stagflation were –

1. Increased consumer spending which led to more imports
2. Increased borrowing from the IMF
3. Rising unemployment

Wilson and devaluation of the pound

- Wilson attempted to improve economic planning but attempts failed because of stagflation
- Department of Economic Affairs never really got off the ground
- Avoided devaluation but in 1967 it was devalued from $2.80 to $2.40
- Wilson tried to reassure the British people but suffered a huge loss in credibility.

How did Heath attempt to tackle the economy?

- Outlined ideas in Selsdon Man
- Wanted to reduce State intervention
- 1971 budget: cut state spending and tax
- Tried to control the union (1971 Industrial Relations Act)

Why did Heath fail?

- Oil Crisis (1973) – prices rose by 70%
- Rising inflation – rose by 20% after the crisis
- Rising unemployment – reached 1 million by 1972
- Heath took a U-turn in government policy
- £2.5 billion was pumped into the economy. Although, it brought down unemployment to
550,000 it did signal that the Selsdon man had been abandoned.

Labour’s IMF Loan

 - Due to the Oil Crisis and inflation, Britain was nearly bankrupt.
- UK negotiated a £3 billion loan from the IMF
- This led to the abandonment of Keynesian economics as the UK had to conform to many rules
in exchange for the loan. It marked a move away from full employment and paved the way
for Thatcher in 1979.

Welfare Changes to welfare

Reforms - 1959: National Insurance Act: introduced a top up scheme based on earnings
- 1971: Family Income Support Program: provided family allowance for the first child
- 1975: Social Security Act

Rising cost of welfare:

- Cost of unemployment benefit rose form 0.6% of GDP in 1939 to 8.8% in 1980
- 1950/60 baby booms: 900,000 births per year meant higher care and education costs
- Increase in average life expectance (10 years)
- Higher living standards prompted higher minimum standard of life for the poor- with absolute
poverty tackled people turned to tackling relative poverty.
- Growing size of the state required even more beurocracy.

Criticisms of the welfare state:

- Margaret Thatcher was a key critic of the welfare state, she feared benefit payments created
a poverty trap.
- Many feared the Welfare State was unsustainable with the struggling economy.

Industrial Patterns in industrial relations

Relations - No of wildcat strikes (unofficial strikes) increase – accounting for 90% of all strike action in the
1960s
- Growing union militancy – caused by workers’ wages fell behind inflation; felt left out and left
behind
- Deteriorating relationships with the unions – caused by persistent strikes and stagflation
- Rising unemployment
- Tension with the unions reaches crisis point – three-day work week and the ‘Winter of
Discontent’

The Wilson Government (1964-1970)

Attitudes towards unions –
1. Wilson’s projected image of an ‘ordinary bloke’ attracted union support
2. Wilson wished to have a close relationship with the unions, wanted to talk over industrial
disputes with “beer and sandwiches at Number Ten”.
3. Trade Disputes Act (1965): restored certain legal immunities for TU’s
4. Barbara Castle (1969) ‘In place of strife’ proposed:
- Secret ballots before strikes become compulsory
- A cooling off period of 90 days could be imposed at ministerial discretion
- Fines be available for breaches of the law by union activists
However, ‘in place of strife’ was so unpopular with the unions, it was never implemented.

The Heath Government (1970-74)

Attitudes towards unions –
1. Wanted to limit power of the unions and refuse to prop up failing industries
2. 1971 Industrial Relations Act:
- Placed Limits on the rights to strike
- Insisted unions had to place themselves on a government register
- Established the National Industrial Relations Court to judge the legality of strike action
- The Act failed because unions refused to comply. (The TUC mobilised a massive campaign of
non-cooperation)

Strike Action
 - 1972 NUM Strike: NUM demanded a 43% pay rise. In response the government offered 8% but
200,000 men went on strike. The strike ended when the government offered a 27% pay
increase.
- 1974 NUM Strike: Oil Crisis led to higher wage demands. The NUM demanded a 35% pay
increase. The government, in response called a 3-day work week in which schools were
closed, electricity was limited and a 50mph speed limit was imposed. In 1974 Heath called an
election with the slogan “who governs Britain” – he lost.

The Wilson & Callaghan Government (1974-79)

Attitudes towards unions –
1. Labour repealed the Industrial Relations Act and replaced it with a vague ‘Social Contract’ - a
voluntary prices and wage control agreement.
2. Callaghan was determined to stick to a 5% limit to pay increases in 1978.
Deteriorating relationships –
- 1978: A strike at Ford lead to a 17% raise for workers (embarrassment for the government)
- January 3rd, 1978: Oil tanker and Lorry Drivers strike; tanker drivers quickly receive a pay rise.
Lorry drivers are left to picket for another 6 weeks – people begin to panic buy
January 22nd Strikes lead to the ‘Winter of Discontent’ –
- 1.5 million public sector workers go on strike (they were protesting wage increases a condition
of the IMF loan)
- Almost all schools shut and other public building (e.g. libraries)
- Hospital staff strike (only treat emergencies)
- Rubbish went uncollected
- In Liverpool, grave diggers strike and by the end of January, 225 corpse were awaiting burial
- Nearly 30 million working days had been lost to strike action by the end of 1979. 84% of the
public thought Trade Unions had become too powerful.

Healthcare Medical Advances

Reforms - 1960: First Kidney Transplant
- 1967: Abortion act – abortion legal up to 28 weeks

Education 1965 Crosland Circular

Reforms - 1965: Universal comprehensive education
- 1966: Government will only fund schools that adopted comprehensive reform
- 1979: 90% students educated at comprehensive schools

Arguments for comprehensive education -

- Grammar schools – 3x resources of secondary modern
- Did not promote parity as promised in 1944 Education Act
- Secondary Modern Schools – poor condition – pupils who failed 11+ condemned to an
education of fewer opportunities
- 11+ favoured middle-class children; few working classes passed exam (tutoring etc)
- Majority of public wanted to scrap 11+

Arguments against comprehensive education -

- Many grammar schools produced highly successful students
- Grammar schools - seen as precious opportunity for social advancement
- 1975: government forced direct grant grammar schools to go comprehensive – many went
independent and scrapped free places for working class children
- Majority of public wanted to keep grammar schools

1963 Robbins Report

- Recommended a universal national grant to university students
- Should be large increase in state funding to increase number of places

Advice acted upon:

 - 1962 – 1970: 22 to 46 universities
- 1964: Labour created CNAA – non-universities to award degrees
- Collages – vocational degrees -seen as inferior
- Open university 1969
- Less pressure to leave school at a young age

University before Robbins Report -

- Funding for university had increase from £1 million (1919) – over £80 million (1962)
- 1962 - local authorities compelled to give allowance to enable students to concentrate on
their studies
- University still out of reach for many: 1900 – 1962 – number of students attending university only
increase from 0.8% to 4%
-

1967 Plowden Report

- Primary schools promoted liberal teaching methods
- Focus on learning through play
- Grammar and punctuation – hinderance to creativity – threat to progress
- Many schools took reforms to extremes:
- Relaxed discipline: no uniform, first name basis
- Some schools: pupils chose which lessons to attend, could watch TV if preferred
- Parents became worried about ‘trendy teachers’ and lack of discipline

1973 Education Act

- Raised leaving age to 16
Society Credit
- 1974, Consumer Credit Act: clarified the rights and responsibilities of lenders and borrowers,
paved the way for an explosion of borrowing in the 1980s and 1990s.
- Credit Cards began being used in 1966.

A more liberal society?

- 1961 Suicide Act – decriminalised suicide
- 1965 Murder Act – abolished death penalty – Majority MPs supported – public did not
- 1967 – sexual offences Act – decriminalised homosexual acts between two consenting men
over 21
- 1967 Abortion act – abortion legal – available on NHS
- 1967 Family Planning Act – pill introduced on NHS
- 1968 theatres Act – abolished censorship – screenings of some films with sexual content
allowed
- 1969 Divorce reform Act – couples to divorce after 2 years if both want – 5 years if only one
party
- Laws often stem from MPs not people – often against views of public (e.g. capital punishment
– 70% still wanted in 1970)
- Often passed because of impracticality (e.g. abortions – limit backstreet abortions)

Homosexuality?
FOR
- Trial of Montagu and Wildeblood – growing public perception state should not be able to
regulate what two consenting adults do in private
- 1967 Sexual Offences Act – legalised sexual relations between men over 21
- 1970’s – number of men made ‘camp’ behaviour acceptable on TV (although denied being
gay to newspapers – said were pretending)
- British branch of Gay Liberation Front – 1971
- 1970’s – Elton John and David Bowie – admit to being bisexual
AGAINST
- 1963 – poll – 93% population thought it was an illness
- After 1967 act – remained illegal to ‘solicit’ homosexual acts
- Number of men arrested for public indecent trebled (1967 – 1972)

A more sexual society?

FOR
- Dr Alex Comforts ‘The joys of sex’ – sexually explicit and illustrated – sex as a pleasure
- 1974 – soft porn film ‘Emmanuelle’ – first adult film shown in cinema
- By 1990 – less than 1% of first sexual intercourse took place after marriage

AGAINST
- Major study ‘The sexual behaviour of young people – 1965 - notion of sexual revolution in
Britain is exaggerated
- Sexual behaviour of young people – only 17% girls and 33% boys in sample teenagers – had
had sex before age of 19
- Thatcher – 1970 Finchley press ‘I should like to see a reversal of the permissive society’
- Mary Whitehouse – took stance against damage done to British morals by media
- Criticised director of BBC from 1960-69 – blamed for growth of permissive and liberal values on
TV
- Clean up TV petition 1964 – 500,000 signatures
- 1977 – legal battle against magazine ‘Gay News’ – for publishing a ‘blasphemous’ poem –
won her case
- Campaigned against pornography – may have influenced government decision to force sex
shops to black out windows 1981
- Nationwide Festival of Light – stage to promote Christian morality
- Supported by famous figures – Cliff Richard
- Inspired over 70 regional rallies – attracted crows of over 100,000

Immigration
- 1962 Commonwealth Immigrants Act – only immigrants with jobs waiting for them/have
certain skills would be allowed in Britain
- Had to apply for voucher – only be issued if could offer needed skills
- Number of vouchers limited by about 9000 each year
- Did not apply to Australia, Canada and New Zealand
- Situation got Worse?
- 1967 – National Front: racist party that wanted immigrants to be sent back to original countries
was set up

1968 Commonwealth Immigrants Act:

1. Immigrants must have close connection to Britain (born or having parent or grandparent who
had been)
2. Restricted number of vouchers – 1500
- Late 60’s – immigration had become major political issue
- Opinion polls – 80% people thought too many immigrants had been allowed into Britain

1968 Commonwealth Immigrants Act:

1. New class of immigrants – ‘Patrials’ – People who had been born in Britain/parents or
grandparents had/ had lived more than 5 years in Britain
2. Anyone else needed a work permit
3. Changing Government Policy
4. Extra labour not needed – most jobs been filled
5. Early 1960s – unemployment started to rise
6. Obvious immigration had led to severe racial tension
 7. Government believed it could calm tensions by placing caps on immigration numbers

1965 Race Relations Act – banned discrimination in all public places

- Became illegal to publish anything that incited racial hatred
- Set up the ‘Race Relations Board’ 1966 – dealt with complaints – no power to enforce its
decisions – made up entirely of white people
- 1968 Race Relations Act: banned discrimination in housing/work – banned racist adverts
- Hard to enforce – landlords & employers could simply say vacancy had been filled
- Set up Community Relations Commission – try to improve race relations
- 1976 Racial Equality Act: banned all attempts to discriminate
- Abusive and threatening language became illegal

Women
- 1951 – ¼ of married women worked; 1970 – ½ did
- Little parliamentary representation; only 23 MPs in 1974
- Often exceptionally talented – overcome huge opposition to get in to parliament
- Barbara Castle – Equal Pay Act
- 1961 Family Planning Act: pill introduced
- Improved midwifery – death during birth (1/1000 1948 – 0.18/1000 1963)
- 1946 National Insurance Act: classed non-working wives as ‘dependants’ – couldn’t claim
unemployment benefits
- 1967 – Abortion Act
- 1969 – Divorce Reform Act

Culture Holidays
& Sport - An increase in disposable income like to more foreign holidays and caravan holidays
- By the end of the 70s ½ the population had been on a caravan holiday
- No. of holidays abroad increased in the 70s due to cheap package holidays and an end to
currency restrictions
- By 1979 almost 2/3 had been on a package holiday using companies like Thomas Cook - most
went to resorts in Spain
- Foreign travel influenced British tastes - wine consumption doubled in the 60s and 70s, Italian
and Greek food became more popular

Car Ownership & impact

- Car ownership doubled between 1960 and 1970 from 5.6 million to 11.8 million
- Out of town supermarkets more popular - ASDA the first one to open in 1964
- Motoring a very male activity: 1975 only 29% of licenses held by women

Cinema
- Popularity
- Attendance fell until late 80’s – half of cinemas closed 1955-1963 – rise of television
- Content
- By 70’s – more violent, sexual films – 1974 ‘Emmanuelle’
- British cinema
- Production collapsed 70’s – number of British films made each year fell from 40 in 1968 to 31 in
1980 – funding cuts

Radio
- The Pirates
- Despite BBC’s monopoly on radio – ‘pirate’ stations - broadcast from ships
- 1967 Act banned pirate radio – Radio Caroline ignored
- 1967 Light Programme – split BBC 1 and BBC 2
- BBC 1 – pop and younger audience
- 1973 Act – ended monopoly – introduced competition
Music
- Skiffle bands – influenced by folk, blues and jazz
- Beatles
- 1962 single ‘Love me Do’ – lead to ‘Beatlemania’
- 1964 – ‘British Invasion’ launched – births music globally influential and respected – benefited
Britain through exports
- Beatles commercialised music - £100 million through merchandise
- 70’s – different genres – escapist/reflective
- Glam rock – David Bowie – more fluid attitudes to sexuality and gender
- Late 70’s punk – sex pistols, angry music
- Rebellion and anarchy – reflected dire economic situation and frustration with politicians
- Female punk empowered women

Television
- Popularity
- Mass medium – popular use of leisure time
- Late 70’s – 16 hours a week in summer – 20 in winter
- Men and women – 23% leisure time watching TV
- Colour TV 1967 – percentage of colour sets – 1.7% in 1970 to 70% in 1979
- Cultural Impact
- Blurred class divisions – everyone watched similar things
- Important part of culture – discussion of shows – daily conversation
- Colour TV – reporting on violence like Vietnam war
- 1962 Piking Report – led to 1964 Television Act – ITV to screen news – two plays and two current
affairs programs
- The Wednesday Play (BBC 1964-1970) – screened hard hitting social realist plays (UP the
Junction 1965 about abortion and 1966 Cathy come home about homelessness)
- Working class/middle class – enjoyed shows like Coronation street (1960) – seen by 20 million
- Rise of Satire – mocked the establishment – dissolving class boundaries
- 70’s – rise of sitcoms – Fawlty Towers