British Labour Party's Welfare Policies Under The Influence Of Its Main Ideologies

British Labour Party's main ideology had big influence on its welfare policies; in contrast, its welfare policies also reflected its thoughts. There were there main ideologies in Labour Party's history which were Labouralism, Socialism and the third way, separately. Labour party's welfare policies in different times reflected the features of above ideologies.Chapter one outlines the early history of the social policy in British, the establishment of the labourlism in Labour party and its position in the social reform from 1906 to 1912. The Labourism played the main role in Labour Party's actions in the first years when it founded as a union between the Trade unions and Socialism groups. Compared with the limited social security from the state, workers more prefer to unite under the unions to struggle for the rights to have a job, raising the pays and improving the work conditions.Chapter two mainly notices on the Labour party's socialism, the 1924 and 1929-31 first Labour governments'social policy practice; the third part of this chapter is the development and the adjustment of the Labour party after 1931 crisis; the fourth and fifth are the achievement of Attlee government and 1964-70 and 1974-9 governments'defense and the fail to commit to the welfare state. The wording of publish ownership in forth clause of the party's constritutions set up socialist goals and formed a image of socialist party for Labour party. In terms of social policies, the fourth clause advocated the "national minimum live standards" which meant the minimum level of salary, promising the full employment, building the comprehensive social security system and put the money on housing, education, health and other social reforms. But that did not mean the Labour party have been transferred to the socialism, the 1924 Labour government and 1929-31 Labour government were in the contradiction of role of national party or the role of union's party. And the difficult of the labour government's welfare policies in 1970s also reflected the influence from the labouralism.Chapter three is the Labour Party's transformation from the socialism to the third way and the thoughts of the third way especially its welfare concept. The forth part of this chapter Blair government's social policy which was featured by forcing people to work. The difficulties of the welfare reality forced the Labour Party to give up its ideal, and its welfare policies back to the slective model. Different from the idealism of the socialism; the third way was the road of realism.The conclusion analyses why Labour party transferred into the pragmatism of the third way and then summary the relationship between the Labour party's ideologies and its social policies.