The State or the Market: Politics and Welfare in Contemporary Britain - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 080398104X ISBN 13: 9780803981041

Publisher: SAGE Publications, 1987

Synopsis

After nearly three decades in which British politics and policy-making were dominated by a consensus about fundamental goals, recent years have seen a breakdown in public agreement on the activities of the state. There has been sharpened conflict over many areas of political and social behaviour, none more contentious than the role of the state in social policy. Not only has the welfare state been placed under the constraints of harsher financial scrutiny, but its very existence has been challenged by criticisms from increasingly polarized positions.

The State or the Market provides a general overview of the evolution and impact of these debates. Distinguished contributors, including exponents of alternative political positions on welfare, examine key issues in current disputes over the state and welfare.

Individual chapters explore the different political and theoretical issues in the debate, and concentrate on their application in key areas of social policy. Particular attention is given to the role of social work, and public policy and the family. The final section examines the political sources of the current crisis of social policy and the prospects for a resolution of the crisis of the welfare state.

The State or the Market is a set book on the Open University Course D211, Social Problems and Social Welfare.

About this edition

• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Publication date: 1987
• ISBN 10: 080398104X
• ISBN 13: 9780803981041
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 288
• Editor: Loney Mr Martin