The great society: reforming the benefits system
Daniel Blythe, Activist and Political Adviser
Daniel is a Labour activist and former Parliamentary Assistant to an MP. Daniel is primarily interested in how government can use economic and political innovation to promote economic growth and a fairer society. He currently works in Westminster.
When I was asked to write this article on social mobility I was told to think radically, beyond my wildest dreams. The trouble is this had the same effect as a friend saying " tell us a joke "- you have loads but all of a sudden they are gone. But after having had the Leveller within me revitalised, by studying Labour’ s long fight for social liberalism and President Lyndon B. Johnson’ s Great Society, I was once again filled with revolutionary zeal!
Inequality Britain
Fairer societies are happier and more productive, so it is in all of our interests to make sure no one is left behind, as we build a new economy from the rubble of the old. To bring home the importance of this task it is worth taking note of analysis conducted by the OECD. It has discovered that income inequality in Britain has risen faster than any other rich country, since the mid-1970s. The top 10 % have incomes 12 times greater than the bottom 10 %, up from eight times greater in 1985. In addition, the top 1 % of earners ' share of income increased from 7.1 % to 14.3 % in the period 1970-2005.
' The top 1 % of earners ' share of income increased from 7 % to 14 % in the period 1970 – 2005 '
The Welfare State can play a leading role in turning back the tide of this inexcusable discrimination millions of families suffer from. Thatcher set in train a neo-liberal paradigm dictating that it is improper for governments to mould society to their whim, but it is becoming plain to see the withdrawal of government activism has not been the success she, and others, touted it would be. But how do we fix the situation? In essence, I agree with Iain Duncan Smith- we need“ welfare that works”.
However, after subscribing to the notion that we need“ welfare that works”, the common ground between Mr Duncan Smith and myself comes to an end, because he and his Tory colleagues see welfare as little more than a safety net, which exists simply to sustain individuals and families
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