How the 1909 Minority Report led to the modern welfare state.
2009 marks the centenary of a key event in British welfare history; the publication of Beatrice Webb's Minority Report to the Poor Law Commission. This text challenged the principles of the workhouse and set out the vision, arguments and values of social justice that were to become the foundations of the modern welfare state. To commemorate the 1909 document, and draw out lessons for today, the Fabian Society has commissioned a collection of essays. Sarah Wise, a specialist in working-class history of the 19th century and Pat Thane, a Professor of Contemporary British History join Jenni to talk about how the workhouse system operated, how people’s attitudes to it changed over time and its legacy in modern Britain. From Workhouse to Welfare, What Beatrice Webb's Minority Report Teaches Us Today, published by the Fabian Society on February 21. ISBN: 9780716341062.
Fabian Society Disclaimer The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites.
