Misplaced Pages

#570429

65-565: The National Economic Advisory Council was set up by second Labour government of United Kingdom Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald . The Prime Minister chaired the Council which included several cabinet ministers , businessmen, the trade unionist Ernest Bevin , the economic historian R. H. Tawney and several economists G. D. H. Cole , Hugh Dalton , Maynard Keynes , A. C. Pigou , Colin Clark and Lionel Robbins . This article related to

130-681: A board to fix prices for produce), Greenwood's Housing Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 39) (which provided subsidies for slum clearance ) and the London Transport Bill 1931 — this was passed by a subsequent Conservative government as the London Passenger Transport Act 1933 ( 23 & 24 Geo. 5 . c. 14). The Housing Act 1930 resulted in the demolition of 245,000 slums by 1939, and the construction of 700,000 new homes. The Housing Act 1930 also allowed local authorities to set up differential rent schemes, with rents related to

195-537: A fall in miners' wages. The act introduced a philanthropic cartel replacing the coal merchants' oligopoly to allocate production quotas by control of a central council, while a Mines Reorganisation Commission was established to encourage efficiency through amalgamations. Many mine owners variously offended these provisions due to Labour's lack of enforcement powers. The Land Utilisation Bill of 1931 would have given ministers sweeping powers to purchase land nationwide (to be run by local authorities and other such bodies). It

260-564: A five-year period. Secretary of State for Scotland Godfrey Collins believed that one could visualise the end of Scottish slums by the end of 1938. Toward the end of 1936 throughout the United Kingdom, around 25,000 people living in slum housing were being rehoused each month, which had totalled around 450,000 by August 1936. Upon the outbreak of World War II, there were around 1,300 proposed slum clearance orders, of which 103 had been confirmed by January 1940, but virtually no slum housing

325-516: A full-scale split in the party. The particular issue on which the split occurred was the vote of the cabinet after much discussion to reduce benefit paid to unemployed people under the National Assistance scheme. The Cabinet was unable to reach an agreement on this controversial issue, with nine members opposing the reduction in the dole and eleven supporting it, and on 24 August 1931 the government formally resigned. The Second Labour Government

390-528: A further £25 million in guarantees for public works schemes designed to reduce unemployment, the parallel Colonial Development Act 1929 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 5) authorising grants up to £1 million a year for schemes in the colonies, a measure continuing at the existing levels the subsidies under the Housing Acts, which the Conservatives had threatened to reduce, and a removal of the appointed Guardians whom

455-575: A long period." The Second Labour Government's achievements in social policy were, however, overshadowed by the government's failure to tackle the effects of the Great Depression, which left mass unemployment in its wake. Spending on public works was accelerated, although this proved to be inadequate in dealing with the problem. By January 1930, 1.5 million people were out of work, a number which reached almost 2 million by June, and by December it topped 2.5 million. The Lord Privy Seal J. H. Thomas , who

520-503: A number of facilities in London parks such as mixed bathing, boating ponds, and swings and sandpits for children. A number of other initiatives were undertaken by the Office of Works during Labour's time in office, including extensions in the amenities of the parks and palaces under its charge, and the spending of thousands of pounds on various improvements for the preservation of memorials across

585-516: A parliamentary majority , its total of 288 seats (arising from 8,300,000 votes) compared to the Conservatives ' 255 seats with 8,560,000 votes. Most remaining seats were those of 58 Liberal MPs. The disparity in seats versus votes cast was created by the outcome on boundaries at the time under the first past the post electoral system and the lack of a boundary change since the Representation of

650-479: A series of hunger marches . The government faced practical enforcement difficulties with its legislation, such as the Coal Mines Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 34), which provided for a 7 1 ⁄ 2 -hour daily shift in mines. Owners were guaranteed minimum coal prices through compulsory production quotas among collieries, thus doing away with cut-throat competition. This solution was introduced to prevent

715-537: A very low scale, and included a provision that (except in trade disputes) claims for benefits could no longer be disallowed except on the authority of a Court of Referees. Altogether, an estimated 170,000 people were brought into benefit by the combined exchanges in the act. A scheme for training unemployed workers who had little chance of being reabsorbed into their previous occupations was extended, while arrangements were made whereby youths who were helping to support their families out of unemployment pay could live at either

SECTION 10

#1732891508571

780-606: The Poor Prisoners' Defence Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 32) introduced criminal legal aid for appearances in magistrates' courts. The Housing (Scotland) Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 40) and the Housing Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 39) provided local authorities with additional central government subsidies to construct new homes for people who had been moved out of slum clearance areas. The Housing Act 1930 provided for rehousing in advance of demolition, and also for

845-537: The Road Traffic Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 43) (which introduced third-party insurance to compensate for property damage and personal injury, made better provisions for road safety, provided greater freedom to municipalities to run omnibus services, the principle of the Fair Wage Clause was applied to all employees on road passenger services, and placed a statutory limit on the working hours of drivers ),

910-570: The Conservatives had put in office in place of the elected Boards in Bedwellty, Chester-le-Street, and Westham. Changes were also made to the taxation system that resulted in the poor paying less tax and the rich paying more. Expenditure on the insurance fund was raised as a means of ensuring that unemployed persons would not be reduced so quickly to poor relief. The Unemployment Insurance Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 16) increased insurance benefits for certain classes of unemployed who had been on

975-678: The Conservatives in 1928), increased dependants' allowances, extended provision for the long-term unemployed, relaxed eligibility conditions, and introduced an individual means test. As a result of the changes made by the government to unemployment provision, the number of people on transitional benefits (payments given to those who had either exhausted their unemployment insurance benefits or did not qualify for them) rose from 120,000 in 1929 to more than 500,000 in 1931. The National Health Insurance (Prolongation of Insurance) Act 1930 ( 21 & 22 Geo. 5 . c. 5) extended provision of health insurance to unemployed males whose entitlement had run out, while

1040-772: The Land Drainage Act (which provided some degree of progress in river management ), the Public Works Facilities Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 50) (conferring easier borrowing powers), the Workmen's Compensation (Silicosis and Asbestosis) Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 29) (which established disability compensation for asbestos ) and the Mental Treatment Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 23). The 1930 Labour budget provided for largely increased expenditure, contained measures to prevent tax evasion, raised

1105-523: The People Act 1918 . MacDonald thus had a minority government that needed the support of Lloyd George 's MPs to pass legislation. His ministers rapidly faced the problems stemming from the impact of the Great Depression , having to reconcile budgetary considerations with the demands of trade unions. In particular, unemployed workers' organisations carried on regular and massive protest actions, including

1170-685: The area of their own choice. Few comprehensive studies were conducted at the time on the effect on communities being broken up and resettled. In 2002, the Labour government launched the Housing Market Renewal Initiative scheme, aiming to demolish, refurbish or construct new housing, which ran until 2011. Known as the Pathfinder programme, areas of housing were demolished and replaced with new houses that were aimed towards aspirational tenants, rather than for residents that had formerly lived in

1235-485: The break-up of communities. Demolition programmes throughout the 20th century were successful in removing the worst of the country's housing stock and helped improve the quality of homes available for the poor and working class. Generally, no account of the incident or impact of housing clearance was taken before the 2000s. Between 1895 and 1918, Liverpool engaged in wide-scale slum clearances, and constructed more homes than any authority outside of London . New housing

1300-480: The charging of low rents. The act also made state aid available for the first time for building attractive little houses for older people without families. An obligation was put onto county councils to contribute towards houses built for farm workers, while provisions in the act for improving bad housing and clearing slums were applied to the country districts as well as to urban areas. A number of measures were also introduced to improve standards of health and safety in

1365-404: The compulsory school age by the development of nursery schools and other services, and by April 1931, the amount of accommodation available in nursery schools was doubled. The number of staff in the school medical services was increased, while about 3,000 new places were provided in day and residential special schools for crippled or blind children and in open-air schools for delicate children. There

SECTION 20

#1732891508571

1430-673: The concept of general improvement areas, where improvement grants were available. It was estimated in 1970 that around 5 million people lived in condemned houses. The criteria to determine the type of house that could be defined as a slum were amended in the 1969 housing act, typically being applied to houses unfit for habitation and those beyond reasonable repair cost. In some cases, a slum clearance area could be declared without swift action, such as in South Kilburn where 342 unfit houses were identified in 1965 yet only 22 had been demolished by 1970, with local MP Laurence Pavitt commenting that

1495-543: The construction of a road round Loch Lomond (Johnston was successful in getting a coach road from Aberfoyle to the Trossachs rebuilt). These and similar schemes, however, failed in the Unemployment Committee (a group composed of Thomas and his assistants Johnston, Lansbury, and Oswald Mosley to develop a solution to the unemployment problem), where the four ministers received negative responses to their proposals from

1560-518: The country's poorest dwellings were in the North West region. In Manchester, many dwellings were considered uninhabitable, with an estimated 54,700 dwellings, representing 27.1% of the total, being unfit for habitation. Around three-quarters of the region's poorest residences were located in a belt of land dominated by Manchester and Liverpool. The decline of the region was noted in comparison to comments made by antiquary John Leland , who in 1538 described

1625-632: The country, as characterised by the restoration of a castle at Porchester near Portsmouth. In Scotland, various welfare initiatives were carried out by the Scottish Office . Medical services in the Highlands and Islands were extended and stabilised, while limits imposed by a previous Conservative administration on the scale of Poor Law relief were scrapped, along with a system of offering the Poor House "as test for able-bodied men who have been out of work for

1690-600: The crisis to the Labour Cabinet in what became known as "Mosley's Memorandum". These included much greater use of credit to finance development through the public control of banking, rationalisation of industry under public ownership, British agricultural development, import restrictions and bulk purchase agreements with foreign (particularly Imperial) producers, protection of the home market by tariffs, and higher pensions and allowances to encourage earlier retirement from industry and to increase purchasing power. Although MacDonald

1755-404: The death penalty for certain offences was abolished. A seven-year limit in connection with war pensions was also removed, while a programme for afforestation was increased. The Unemployment Insurance Act 1929 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 3) scrapped the "genuinely seeking work" clause in unemployment benefit (which was originally abolished by the first Labour government in 1924, and reintroduced by

1820-663: The downfall of the Second Labour Government, together with its replacement by the National Government and its failure to develop a coherent economic strategy for dealing with the effects of the Great Depression, remained controversial amongst historians for many years. Members of the Cabinet are in bold face. Slum clearance in the United Kingdom Clearance of slum areas resumed and increased after

1885-431: The end of the decade, a housing act in 1969 provided financial encouragement for authorities and landlords to improve existing housing stock and extend the life of many older properties. By 1985, England and Wales had seen over 1.5 million houses declared unfit or demolished over a 30-year period, displacing over 3.6 million people. The Labour government in 2002 launched the Housing Market Renewal Initiative scheme, with

1950-631: The end she ended up satisfying none of them. In the summer of 1931, the government was gripped by a political and financial crisis as the value of the pound and its place on the Gold Standard came under threat over fears that the budget was unbalanced. A run on gold began when a report by the May Committee estimated that there would be a deficit of £120 million by April 1932, and recommended reductions in government expenditure and higher taxes to prevent this. MacDonald's cabinet met repeatedly to work out

2015-416: The five years ending June 1965, Manchester was ahead of the other cities in the number of houses either demolished or compulsory purchased with a view to demolition. Towards the end of the 1960s, slum clearances and the consequent destruction of communities were causing concerns for the government. The Housing Act 1969 was introduced to help authorities overcome problems with slum clearances by introducing

National Economic Advisory Council - Misplaced Pages Continue

2080-532: The government increased the number of free places that local education authorities could offer to 50%. To improve safety standards at sea, an international conference was convened by the Labour President of the Board of Trade, which led to 27 governments signing a convention establishing for the first time uniform safety rules for all the cargo ships throughout the world. Conditions for soldiers were improved, while

2145-518: The history of the United Kingdom or its predecessor states is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Second MacDonald ministry The second MacDonald ministry was formed by Ramsay MacDonald on his reappointment as prime minister of the United Kingdom by King George V on 5 June 1929. It was the second time the Labour Party had formed a government; the first MacDonald ministry held office in 1924. The government formed lacked

2210-529: The houses deemed unfit in 1955 and was one of 38 local authorities classed as having clearance problems requiring special attention. From 1964 to 1969, 385,270 houses in England were demolished or condemned during slum-clearance schemes. Slum clearance accelerated during the 1960s: 10,000 more slum houses were demolished during 1968 than in 1963. In a speech in the House of Commons in 1965, Alf Morris noted that 20% of

2275-531: The housing problem was of the most importance to his constituents. In September 1971, the National House Condition Survey estimated that there were around 1.2 million unfit properties in England and Wales, of which 700,000 (58%) fell within existing or proposed areas for clearance. By the early 1970s, new housing estates were mostly occupied by residents who had been displaced by slum clearance or those who were deemed in greatest need. However that

2340-414: The inclusion of widows between the ages of 55 and 70. The Unemployment Insurance Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 16) re-drafted the terms of benefit, so as to remove the major part of the grievance relating to the disqualification of persons alleged to be "not genuinely seeking work", which led to greater numbers of people acquiring unemployment assistance. Other measures carried out in 1929–30 included

2405-616: The incomes of the tenants concerned. Immediate measures carried out by the government upon taking office included the Unemployment Insurance Act 1929 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 3), which made temporary amendment of the Unemployment Insurance Acts, increasing the state contribution to the fund, the Development (Loan Guarantees and Grants) Act 1929 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 7) authorising grants up to £25 million and

2470-404: The mid-1950s. In 1960, 50 local authority clearance figures suggested long-term problems in addressing slums. Through the period 1955–1960, of the estimated 416,706 dwellings deemed unfit, only 62,372 had been cleared by 1960. The authority with the highest number of unfit homes was Liverpool with around 88,000, closely followed by Manchester. By March 1963, Liverpool had only cleared around 10% of

2535-484: The necessary cutbacks and tax rises, while at the same time seeking loans from overseas. It later became clear that the bankers in New York would only provide loans if the government carried out significant austerity measures, such as a 10% reduction in the dole. During August 1931, the Cabinet struggled to produce budget amendments that were politically acceptable but proved unable to do so without causing mass resignations and

2600-481: The number of certified teachers in service was increased by about 3,000, while the number of classes with more than 50 children was reduced by about 2,000. Capital expenditure on elementary school building approved by the Board of Education during 1930–1931 stood at over £9 million, more than double the amount approved during 1928–29, the Conservative government's last year in office. In addition, an annual grant to

2665-468: The poorest people, whom they aimed to support, from that intended: new housing built to replace demolished slum dwellings was often too costly to rent for poorer families, who had lost their homes to make way for newer developments; these typically became occupied instead by the upper working class. In the period following the 1970s, opinions started to change towards the view that clearance was less than effective and too costly, both fiscally and in terms of

National Economic Advisory Council - Misplaced Pages Continue

2730-421: The previous Conservative government providing assistance towards the improvement of privately owned cottages for land workers was extended for another five years. To protect farm workers from exploitation, additional inspectors were appointed in 1929 to investigate "cases of refusal to pay minimum wages," and as a result of the work carried out by these investigators, wage arrears were recovered for 307 workers with

2795-427: The primary objective to demolish housing considered undesirable and replace with new developments. Also known as the Pathfinder programme, the scheme ended in 2011, due to the Conservative austerity program. From the late 19th century up to the 1970s, clearance of slum housing was seen as an expensive undertaking with numerous problems, although generally considered a necessity to achieve a higher standard of living. In

2860-814: The problem of inner-city slums. Clearance strategies were used predominantly during the early 20th century for redeveloping urban communities, such as in relation to the Housing Act 1930 (also known as the Greenwood Act), which required councils to prepare slum clearance plans, and some progress was made before the start of the World War II . Up to February 1932, 394 clearance areas were declared in England and Wales, affecting 64,000 people. Estimates in 1933 by local authorities in Scotland suggested that nearly 62,000 new homes needed to be built to replace demolished slum housing, of which around 90% were expected to be built within

2925-478: The protection of workers in tanneries. The Local Government Act 1929 ( 19 & 20 Geo. 5 . c. 17) abolished the workhouse test and replaced the Poor Law with public bodies known as public assistance committees for the relief of the poor and destitute, while Poor Law hospitals came under the control of local authorities. The Poor Law Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 17) also encouraged local authorities (in

2990-533: The shipbuilding industry. The Hairdressers' and Barbers' Shops (Sunday Closing) Act 1930 ( 20 & 21 Geo. 5 . c. 35) (which came into force in January 1931) provided for the compulsory closing of hairdressers and barbers shops on Sundays and with certain exceptions provided that "no person may carry on the work of a hairdresser on Sunday." An order of February 1930 prescribed protective measures for cement workers, while an order of May 1930 contained provisions concerning

3055-450: The space of a few months. In addition, levels of support for war veterans and family members were expanded. In education, various measures were introduced to promote equality and opportunity. More generous standards of school-planning were secured, while special attention was given to the provision of adequate accommodation for practical work. The number of "black-listed" schools was reduced from about 2,000 to about 1,500. From 1929 to 1931,

3120-513: The standard rate of income tax as well as the surtax while making concessions to the smaller taxpayer. A town and country planning act gave local authorities more power to control local and regional planning, while the Housing (Rural Authorities) Act 1931 ( 21 & 22 Geo. 5 . c. 39) provided a sum of £2 million to help the poorer rural districts which were willing but unable to fulfil their housing responsibilities. In addition, an act passed by

3185-520: The top civil servants from the various government departments. The one minister whose proposals may have helped Britain to recover quickly from the worst effects of the Great Depression was Oswald Mosley , a former member of the Conservative Party . Frustrated by the government's economic orthodoxy (a controversial policy upheld by the fiscally conservative Chancellor, Philip Snowden ), Mosley submitted an ambitious set of proposals for dealing with

3250-426: The town of Manchester as "the fairest, best builded" town he had seen. Morris considered that Manchester had shown "more vigour courage and compassion" than other cities in tackling the slum housing problem, with 4,000 houses demolished both in 1963 and in 1964, in line with set targets. When comparing slum clearances undertaken by Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Liverpool, Sheffield and Bristol, figures suggested that for

3315-446: The training centres (or lodgings in the vicinity) and have a special remittance of 9 shillings a week made to their homes. In addition, the provision of instruction for unemployed boys and girls between the ages of 14 and 18 was extended. The Widows', Orphans' and Old Age Contributory Pensions Act 1925 ( 15 & 16 Geo. 5 . c. 70) was amended to cover some hundreds of thousands of additional pensioners, under improved conditions, with

SECTION 50

#1732891508571

3380-478: The unemployment insurance system. This legislation limited the rights of short-time, casual and seasonal workers and of married women to claim unemployment benefit, which further damaged the reputation of the government amongst Labour supporters. Bondfield was caught between the financial orthodoxy of Snowden, the critics of cuts on Labour's backbenches and the baying for even more cuts on the Opposition benches, and in

3445-439: The universities was increased by £250,000. Various military reforms were carried out, with the raising of the minimum age of enrolment into Officers' Training Corps from 13 to 15, the abolition of the death penalty for certain offences, and the modification of the disciplinary code "in the direction of clemency." A circular was issued that urged the need for an expansion of provisions for the health and welfare of children under

3510-501: The war, while the 1960s saw the largest number of house renewal schemes pursued by local authorities, particularly in Manchester where it was reported around 27% 'may' have been unfit for human habitation, although the majority were well built solid structures that could have been renovated or repurposed. Housing, churches, schools and pubs that formed close-knit communities were devastated, with families dispersed across other areas. Towards

3575-493: The words of one study) "to work with a local voluntary group to find suitable employment for deaf people." The lid was kept on the (then) ever present risk of a naval arms race, while the system of naval officer recruitment was reformed to make it less difficult for working-class sailors to secure promotion from the ranks. George Lansbury, the First Commissioner of Works, sponsored a "Brighter Britain" campaign and introduced

3640-467: The workplace. As a means of improving industrial hygiene, regulations were introduced on 1 June 1931 that prescribed measures of hygiene for establishments engaged in electrolytic chromium plating, while regulations introduced on 28 April 1931 dealt with conditions in the refractory materials industries. On 24 February 1931, special regulations were issued by the Home Office for the prevention of accidents in

3705-401: The years following World War II, areas affected by slum clearance were usually replaced by social housing, while many of the newer houses had priority allocation given to those who had lost their previous home through demolition. Throughout Britain and other developed countries, historical housing literature suggests that slum clearance and housing renewal policies have had the opposite effect on

3770-533: Was also a large increase in the number of meals supplied to school children, while support given by the government to the National Milk Publicity Council's scheme for supplying milk to children resulted in 600,000 children benefiting daily from this service. Technical education was developed and arrangements were made for co-operation between technical colleges and industry, while new regulations facilitated an expansion of adult education. In addition,

3835-494: Was cleared during the 15 years following the outbreak of war. The drive to clear slum houses resumed in 1955, particularly in Manchester where 68,000 were deemed to be unfit. By 1957, slum clearances were well under way according to Henry Brooke , the Minister of Housing and Local Government , who stated that houses condemned or demolished had gone up from 20,000 in 1954 to 35,000 by 1956, while rehousing over 200,000 people during

3900-477: Was intended for tenants displaced by demolition of their old home, although not everyone displaced was re-homed, and only those who could pay the rent were offered a new home. In Leeds , where many slum clearances were of back-to-back houses , the land they occupied was very small and usually incapable of supporting any new profitable developments; this impacted upon site-value compensation. While new council housing had been built, little had been done to resolve

3965-651: Was mauled by the House of Lords and had no backing from the Treasury so reduced to limited powers to improve agricultural productivity and provide and subsidise smallholdings to the unemployed and agricultural workers, as the Agricultural Land (Utilisation) Act 1931 ( 21 & 22 Geo. 5 . c. 41). Other legislation introduced include the Agricultural Marketing Act 1931 ( 21 & 22 Geo. 5 . c. 42) (which established

SECTION 60

#1732891508571

4030-744: Was not always the case. The construction of the Byker Wall in Newcastle upon Tyne was intended to provide modern social housing for the residents of Byker , an area of run-down back-to-back housing. Although the new development won many awards, fewer than 20% of the original 1,700 Byker residents were eventually housed there by 1976. Data from the Ministry of Housing and Local Government suggests that clearances between 1955 and 1985 resulted in around 1.5 million properties demolished and affected about 3.7 million people, although this does not account for people who left

4095-649: Was put in charge of the problem of unemployment, was unable to offer a solution, while Margaret Bondfield also failed to come up with an imaginative response. Other members of the cabinet, however, put forward their own proposals for dealing with the Depression. George Lansbury proposed land reclamation in Great Britain, a colonising scheme in Western Australia, and pensions for people at the age of sixty, while Tom Johnston pushed for national relief schemes such as

4160-582: Was succeeded by the First National Ministry , also headed by Ramsay MacDonald and made up of members of Labour, the Conservatives and Liberals, calling itself a National Government. Viewed by many Labour supporters as a traitor, Macdonald was subsequently expelled from the Labour Party, and remained a hated figure within the Labour Party for many years thereafter, despite his great services to his party earlier in his life. The circumstances surrounding

4225-464: Was sympathetic to some of Mosley's proposals, they were rejected by Snowden and other members of the Cabinet, which led Mosley to resign in frustration in May 1930. The government continued to adhere to an orthodox economic course, as characterised by the controversial decision of the Minister of Labour Margaret Bondfield to push through Parliament an Anomalies Act, aimed at stamping out apparent "abuses" of

#570429