Idleness How successful were the Labour Government in dealing with the giant Idleness?

Labour were committed to a “high level” of stable employment after WW2 Beveridge had reckoned unemployment could not be brought lower than 3% By 1946 Labour had brought this figure down to 2.5% This led to Dalton the Chancellor of the Exchequer claiming “full employment was the greatest revolution brought about by the Labour Government” Jobs were created in industry as well as schemes such as road building and construction

Reason for Labour’s success ? Labour’s success in dealing with unemployment can be put down to a few reasons… Post war boom – devastation of WW2 meant employment was necessary to rebuild country Industries such as coal, rail, gas, electricity as well as the Bank of England were all nationalised. Marshall Aid from America, Britain received £2400m to help stop the spread of Communism and also help rebuild Britain.

Problems faced by Labour Although much of the success of Labour on tackling unemployment was in many peoples opinion, due to the situation within Britain after WW2, they did face problems. In Britain, rationing was still going on The country also faced massive fuel shortages The pound had lost its value by 30% Inflation was rising quickly They also had a balance of payments to repay from WW2

Overall Many people believe the “Giant” Idleness would have been overcome by whichever party was in power due to the condition the country found itself in after WW2 However, they were faced with massive economical challenges and were still successful in maintaining full employment as well as keeping the economy strong Therefore it could be argued Labour was a success in tackling the giant Idleness Martin Roberts “It was accepted that the state had responsibility for improving people’s lives, especially the lives of it’s poorest workers”