Turning point

• Campbell- Bannerman resigned due to ill health

• Asquith was his replacement

• Lloyd George and Churchill were in the cabinet

• They were committed to social reform

                   

     

Pressure for reforms

• Royal Commission on the Aged 1893-1895

• Most people thought it was a good idea

• New Zealand and Germany had introduced pensions for the elderly

• Losing seats to the Labour Party by 1908

                  

      

Keir Hardie http://www.learningcurve.gov.uk/britain1906to1918/g1/cs2/g1cs2s3.htm

Problems

• Problems with cost:• Asquith would only

commit to a Pensions Bill when the budget was in surplus

• Decided on a non-contributory scheme financed from taxation

Problems

• Cost of pensions from 65 would be 17 million, Asquith decided on a less generous age of 70

Opposition

• Friendly society opposition as this would threaten their interests (better off working class and idea of self help)

• TU’s and public opinion favoured pensions therefore friendly societies had to back down

The old Age Pensions Act,1908

• Came about through public pressure eg NCOL, WL Lever, loss of two by elections to Labour

• The Bill passed through with little opposition

The old Age Pensions Act,1908• Entitled people over 70 with an

annual income of between 21 and 31 pounds to between 1 shilling(5p) and 5 shillings (25p)

• Gov. admitted that they were not a complete solution to poverty in old age, still short of Rowntree’s calculations to remain above the ‘poverty line’

The old Age Pensions Act,1908

• Also exemptions:• Had to be British

and resident for 20 years

• Had avoided imprisonment in previous 10 years

• Had not habitually avoided work

Drunken Women Fighting, London, c.1900

The old Age Pensions Act,1908

• Gov. miscalculated how many people would come forward

• Estimated 500,00 but 650,000 applied

• No birth certificate, difficult to prove age

The old Age Pensions Act,1908

• By 1914 the number of people coming forward increased to nearly 1 million

• The Act brought attention to the level of poverty amongst the old, these were people who had worked all their lives

• ‘too proud to wear the badge of pauperism

The Budget of 1909

• £16 million needed to pay for pensions and ships

• Better off targeted with tax increases- super tax for those earning over £3,000

• Higher taxes on beer, tobacco etc

• Land tax

Opposition to budget

• Conservatives did not like proposals but were outnumbered in the HOC

• However they had a majority in the HOL

• HOL rejected budget• An election was called

over the ‘People’s budget’• Liberals with labour help

won and the budget was passed

• 1911 parliament Act

According to the cartoon, what are the possible areas the government could spend money on?

Does Asquith look as though he has made his mind up how to spend his money?

According to the cartoonist, do old age pensions seem to be a priority?

'Financial year, ending of - What will he do with it' by W.K. Haselden; Daily Mirror, 29 March 1906

Activity

• List the problems the liberal government had to overcome in order to have the old age pensions Act passed in 1908

• How successful do you consider the pensions Act to have been in tackling the problems of the elderly?