A Research On The British Poor Relief System Changes

Britain was the first country to establish a poverty relief system,from the Elizabeth Poverty Relief Act in 1601 to the establishment of the social security system and the welfare state system in the 20th century,and then the adjustment of the welfare state system in the late 1970s.The poverty relief system provided a reference and reproducible blueprint of the anti-poverty theory and practice for other countries,and had an important impact on the establishment and development of the social security system in the West and even all over the world.This paper takes the Britain poverty relief system as the main research object.Through the in-depth exploration of its evolution process and the characteristics of each stage,the reasons and uniqueness of the system,the effectiveness and shortcomings of the policies,and the development and adjustment of the policies,this paper hopes to obtain the experience and enlightenment in dealing with poverty,narrowing the social gap,promoting the development of economic and social and so on.This paper mainly focuses on the following questions:what is the British poverty relief system?Why did Britain become the first country in the world to establish a poverty relief system?What are the problems in the development process of the British poverty relief system and the effect of its implementation?What are the beneficial implications of the British poverty relief system for countries around the world to establish a long-term mechanism to effectively solve the problems of poverty and relative poverty?First,the British poverty relief system has a long history and is typical and representative.The British poverty relief system is the first institutional arrangement in the world in which the government undertakes the responsibility to deal with poverty.Different from early charitable relief activities,the British poverty relief system is implemented in the form of national legislation and national financial guarantee.The system originated from the early church charity relief,which has experienced the era of poverty relief law,the period of social security system,the period of welfare state system and the period of adjustment of welfare state system,and has continued to this day.Although its content,form and standards have developed and changed several times,help the weak,narrowing the gap between the rich and the poor,maintaining social stability,preventing and resolving social risks and striking have been well inherited and developed,which has played a positive role in promoting the economic and social development of Britain.Second,compared with other Western capitalist countries,Britain has a unique political,economic,social and cultural environment,which will inevitably make the British poverty relief system having its particularity.There are countless connections between the British poverty relief system and politics.It was born in the needs of the feudal rulers to deal with the problems of refugees and poverty and maintain the feudal rule.Its development benefited from the political "voice" of the emerging bourgeoisie with the help of parliamentary reform under the background of the industrial revolution,and was brilliant from the needs of the Labor Party and the Conservative Party to win voters and maintain the ruling position of the political party during the period of rotating governance.There is no doubt that political factors have played an important role in the emergence and development of the British poverty relief system.At the same time,the emergence,development and reform of the British Poor Law system benefit from the development and progress of British economy and society.The enclosure movement gave birth to a new capitalist agricultural production relationship,and some landless farmers became refugees,which is also one of the unique historical background and important reasons for the emergence of the poverty relief system in Britain.In the 1860s,the industrial revolution transformed Britain from an agricultural country to the most advanced capitalist industrial country in the world.Productivity and economic strength achieved a great leap,providing fertile soil for the development and progress of the poverty relief system.In addition,the British social and cultural tradition and the mainstream thought of poverty relief also had an important impact on the development of the poverty relief system.On the one hand,the development and change of British mainstream poverty relief thought not only made Britain a typical country of poverty relief thought,but also laid a solid ideological foundation for the development of poverty relief system.On the other hand,the British poverty relief system is also rooted in specific social and cultural traditions,and its development process better reflects the will of the people.Third,the policies of the British poverty relief system have been continuously improved in the process of adjustment.The Elizabethan Poverty Relief Act not only embodies the government’s responsibility to help the poor,but also emphasizes the self-help spirit of relying on labor to get rid of poverty,which has better alleviated the problem of refugees perplexing the rulers,maintained social stability,and created conditions for the emergence and development of capitalism in Britain.At the same time,the institutional disadvantages of the Old Poor Law system,such as the heavy financial burden and the obstruction of the free flow of labor,had gradually appeared,laying the groundwork for the reform of the Poor Law.The implementation of the New Poor Law had effectively controlled the number of poor people receiving relief and poverty relief expenditure.The relief in the workhouse began to try to take different relief measures for the poor with different causes of poverty,which is also one of the most positive changes of the New Poor Law.At the same time,the principle of inferior disposal objectively provides sufficient labor for industrialized mass production.However,the new poverty relief law is still a single comprehensive poverty relief measure,with limited security level and coverage.It can only help the poor after they fall into the mire of poverty.It can not prevent poverty,and still can not make up for the congenital defect of negative post remedial measures.At the beginning of the 20th century,the social insurance system was officially introduced into the British poverty relief system.Parliament successively passed important laws and regulations such as the Old Age Pension Act,the National Insurance Act,the National Relief Act and the National Health Care Act and so forth.The British Labour government also announced the establishment of a welfare state in 1948.Prominent social problems such as old age,unemployment and disease have been dealt with more effectively.In the late 1970s,Britain’s economic development was facing difficulties,and the welfare state system also entered a period of adjustment.Under the guidance of neo liberalism,the Thatcher government lowered the security standard of welfare policy to reduce financial expenditure,appropriately reduced the responsibility of the state in social security,emphasized that individuals should bear more active responsibilities and obligations,and strived to balance the responsibilities and obligations of the state,society and individuals.Under the guidance of the "third way" theory,Blair’s Labor government paid more attention to investment,education and employment,advocated replacing the previous welfare state system with the national model of social investment,and provided citizens with more active welfare policies.Fourth,the development experience and lessons of the British poverty relief system provide useful enlightenment for the development and improvement of poverty relief and social security systems in various countries.First of all,a country’s economic development is the basis for the establishment and development of social policies such as the poverty relief system.It should adapt to the national economic and social development.There is a dialectical and unified relationship of mutual promotion and restriction between the two.Secondly,the British poverty relief system is an important social policy guaranteed by national legislation.Its establishment,development and improvement are confirmed and guaranteed in the form of law.Receiving relief is no longer a charity,but a citizen’s right protected by law.Thirdly,the British poverty relief system pays attention to the unity of rights and responsibilities of all parties.Finally,the poverty relief system should be sustainable.This paper used a variety of research methods to study the British poverty relief system.Firstly,historical research method.This paper systematically combs the historical development context of the British poverty relief system,overall consideration of the specific economic,political,social and cultural background on which institutional changes are based,in order to explore the internal law of the development process of the British poverty relief system,the path and trend of the institutional change,and the influencing factors of the institutional development and evolution.Secondly,literature research method.It mainly refers to the research results on the British poverty relief system at home and abroad,as well as the statistics,policy materials,reports and other materials of British government departments and international organizations,in order to comprehensively grasp the change process of the British poverty relief system.Thirdly,case study method.Taking the British poverty relief system as an empirical case,this paper analyzes the development and reform process of the poverty relief system in different historical periods,so as to show its effect and mechanism in coping with poverty and relative poverty,narrowing the social gap,and implementing the development oriented social assistance policy.