Health and welfare provision should be the responsibility of the government. Discuss
20 marks
The question as to who should provide welfare is a complex one and there are a range of theories. Some believe that the government is responsible for providing welfare and argue in favour of a collectivist approach. Such proponents would hold that it is the responsibility of the government to concern itself with matters of welfare. Others look to individualist approaches which focus on the importance of self-help and individual responsibility and argue that collectivism creates a dependency culture. In more recent times, some schools of thought have emerged which advocate elements of both approaches. This essay will discuss the various approaches in order to determine whether or not health and welfare provision should be the responsibility of the government.
Firstly, Collectivists believe in the principles of the welfare state. When the welfare state was created it intended to be collectivist, equal, comprehensive and universal. It was funded through national insurance contributions and everybody, irrespective of income, was entitled to equal treatment from the ‘cradle to the grave’.(K)Today the welfare state and those are in favour of its existence believe that the government should continue to provide health and welfare provision through the NHS and social security schemes. (K)It is argued that society benefits from having government interventions, because poverty levels are at an all-time high with an estimated 1in 4 Scottish children living in poverty.(A)Additionally, life expectancy in some areas of Scotland is lower than in some developing countries. With this in mind, the Collectivist would argue that the government has a responsibility to intervene as it serves the greater good of the nation(A). Policies which seek to improve health such as the smoking ban and the introduction of free prescriptions are seen essential. Moreover, the collectivist would argue that governments should help to provide jobs and support for people seeking employment as it will lead to a growth in the economy. (A)Overall, the collectivist would argue that the government is responsible for providing welfare since social problems relating to health and wealth are best solved collectively. (E)
However, individualists take the opposite view and regard the welfare state as being the cause of a “dependency culture” in Britain as was depicted in Channel Four’s documentary “Benefits Street”. This program highlighted an area of Birmingham with a high level of benefit claimants.(K) Supporters of the individualist approach argue that it is the individual’s responsibility to provide for themselves and not the responsibility of the government. Therefore, advocates of individualism favour a system of lower taxes and therefore less public spending. (A) Individualists argue that since the creation of the welfare state, Britain has developed into a “nanny state” where many people are too reliant on government hand-outs such as job seeker’s allowance. Individualists favour privatisation of services and industries, for example individualists might argue for the privatisation of the NHS or schools (K). The Conservative governments of Margaret Thatcher emphasised the importance of self-help and cut back on the size and scope of the welfare state (A). For example, Thatcher introduced the “Right to Buy” scheme which reduced the number of council owned properties and enabled many poorer citizens to own their own homes for the first time (K). As well as saving councils money, at least in the short term, a greater responsibility was placed on the individual to look after their own home and pay maintenance costs rather than councils(A). Therefore, individualists argue that the best way to provide welfare is to encourage greater individual responsibility as this is the best way to avoid poverty.(E)
On the other hand, other schools of thought argue that it is unrealistic to explain modern governments purely as either individualist or collectivist. In the 1990s and 2000s, Tony Blair’s “New Labour” government adopted an approach which became known as the “Third Way”.(K) This ideology incorporated aspects of the traditional Labour collectivist ideology along with a focus on the kind of self-help initiatives associated with individualism.(K)Blair had been influenced by the American sociologist Charles Murray who believed that an “underclass” had been created in British society as a result of the increasing dependency of the extremely poor on government assistance. Blair’s approach was to “modernise” the welfare state whilst keeping in touch with its founding principles. Blair argued that benefits should be “hand up, not hand out” and made changes to the benefits system.(K)Labour introduced “Welfare to Work” programmes which had the aim of getting people off benefits and into jobs. In addition, some benefits became means-tested and others were simply cut back. Labour still invested heavily in the NHS and particularly in education which illustrates the fact that whilst they introduced certain measures which deviated from their traditional core beliefs they still maintained working class support.(K) Clearly then, whilst Labour’s Third Way approach emphasised that individuals had to take more responsibility for their own welfare, it is clear that the approach also argues that the government is still to a large extent responsible for welfare, particularly with regard to the NHS and education.(E)
However, in recent years there has been a movement away from the Third Way approach towards a more individualist outlook. David Cameron’s Conservative Party won the 2010 General Election based on promises of cuts to welfare spending and of aiming to reduce the national debt. The Conservatives have referred to the need for a “Big Society” as opposed to big government which has so far led to a reduction in state funded benefits and an emphasis on more individual accountability.(K) This approach, argue the Conservatives, is a result of a welfare state which has provided too much assistance to the public and has led to a culture of dependency. Therefore the Conservatives would argue that cuts to public services and the encouragement of greater individual responsibility is a positive step.(A) Supporters of this approach naturally believe that the government should be less responsible for providing welfare for the British people. One initiative which the coalition has introduced is “Vanguard Communities”. Such communities are voluntary and exist so that individuals can provide services for themselves which were previously run by councils. Money for this scheme was raised through the so-called “Big Society Bank” which consists of around £400 million taken from dormant bank accounts.(K) The purpose of this approach is to encourage individuals to help themselves rather than looking to council services. In addition to saving money, the coalition hopes that this will change attitudes in society and encourage citizens to run organisations for their own benefit rather than expecting such services to be provided at the tax payer’s expense.(A) Clearly then, advocates of the “Big Society” believe that the current welfare state in Britain is overly generous and that individuals have to be more accountable for providing for themselves, rather than the government.(E)
In conclusion, it is clear that the issue of welfare provision is a complex and divisive one. Some argue that the government should be the sole providers of welfare as it is more beneficial for society. Others argue that individual responsibility is the only way to combat the dependency culture created by the collectivist approach.(E)More recent approaches incorporate aspects of collectivist and individualist approaches, as exemplified by Labour’s “Third Way” and the Conservative Party’s “Big Society”. It is arguably too simplistic to argue for an approach to welfare provision which relies solely on either collectivist or individualist approaches,and therefore it is perhaps appropriate that modern day governments need to use a blend of both. (E) This leads to governments which provide welfare for those that need it most but which also encourages individuals to take some responsibility for looking after themselves. (E)
Knowledge = 11, Analytical comments = 8, Evaluative comments = 7, Structure = 2 marks?