The New Labour government elected in May 1997 claimed that it would modernise the welfare state, by rejecting the solutions of both the Old Left and the New Right. New Labour, new welfare state? provides the first comprehensive examination of the social policy of New Labour; compares and contrasts current policy areas with both the Old Left and the New Right and applies the concept of the 'third way' to individual policy areas and to broader themes which cut across policy areas. The contributors provide a comprehensive account of developments in the main policy areas and in the themes of citizenship and accountability, placing these within a wider framework of the 'third way'. They find a complex picture. Although the exact shape of the new welfare state is difficult to detect, it is clear that there have been major changes in areas such as citizenship, the mixed economy of welfare, the centrality of work in an active welfare state, and the appearance of new elements such as joined up government at the centre and new partnerships of governance at the periphery. New Labour, new welfare state? provides topical information on the debate on the future of the welfare state and is essential reading for students and researchers in social policy, politics and sociology.

In The Politics of the New Welfare State the main reforms in work and welfare are summarized and analyzed to provide up-dated evidence of policy change and its main determinants to policymakers, researchers, and stakeholders interested in the field.

This title provides a detailed study of the welfare reforms of New Labour's first term. It compares achievements with stated aims, examines success in the wider context, and contributes to the debate on the problems of evaluating social policy.

The 1997 election marked the prospect of a new era in social welfare - the possibility of establishing a third phase in the post-war history of the welfare state (the first being the creation of the Keynesian welfare state, the second the Thatcher/Major neo-liberal reforms). The key aim of this book is to critically explore the options for the future of welfare under New Labour. The welfare state that the government inherited from the Conservatives is widely believed to be in a critical condition. At the same time, there is evidence of widening social inequality in Britain which existing social policy measures fail to address.

What was the impact of the Second World War on the development of the welfare state? Did Attlee’s pioneering post-war Labour governments create the welfare state and a socialist society? Was there a welfare consensus between Labour and the Conservatives in the period from 1951 to 1979? Was there a welfare revolution during the Thatcher and Major years? What lies at the heart of New Labour’s welfare policy? In Revisiting the Welfare State, Robert Page provides a persuasive, fresh and challenging account of the British welfare state since 1940. His text re-examines some of the most commonly held assumptions about the post-war welfare state and reignites the debate about its role and purpose. Robert Page starts from the premise that the student of social policy can gain a deeper understanding of the welfare state by studying political and historical accounts of the welfare state, party manifestos, policy documents and political memoirs. Drawing from these sources, he provides a clear guide to the changing role of the state in the provision of welfare since 1940. Each of the five chapters is devoted to a particular theme associated with the post-war welfare state, the last of which focuses on the strategy of the New Labour governments of Tony Blair. Written by one of the leading authorities on contemporary social policy, Revisiting the Welfare State is a stimulating guide to the political history of the post-war welfare state in Britain. It is essential reading for students of social policy, social work, politics and contemporary history. It will also appeal to the general reader who is seeking an accessible guide to the political history of the post-war welfare state.

This study provides a comprehensive examination of the social policy of New Labour. It examines differences between current policy areas and provides topical information on the debate on the future of the welfare state.

The New Labour Government has placed great emphasis on service delivery. It has provided performance information in the form of Annual Reports, Public Service Agreements, Performance Assessment Frameworks, and a host of other targets. But has New Labour delivered on its welfare reform? Evaluating New Labour's welfare reforms: provides the first detailed and comprehensive examination of the welfare reforms of New Labour's first term; compares achievements with stated aims; examines success in the wider context; contributes to the debate on the problems of evaluating social policy. It is essential reading for academics and students of social policy and provides important information for academics and students in a wide range of areas such as politics, sociology, public policy, public administration and public management interested in welfare reform and policy evaluation.

Where other books are either highly partisan dismissals or appreciations of the Third Way, or dull sociological accounts, this book gets behind the clichés in order to show just what is left of Labour party ideology and what the future may hold. New Labour has changed the face of Britain. Culture, class, education, health, the arts, leisure, the economy have all seen seismic shifts since the 1997 election that raised Blair to power. The Labour that rules has distanced itself from the failed Labour of the 70s and 80s, but the core remains. Labour remains gripped by its own past - unable and unwilling to shed its ties to the old Labour party, but determined to avoid the mistakes of which lead to four electoral defeats between 1979 and 1992. Cronin covers the full history of the party from its post war triumph through decades of shambolic leadership against ruthless and organised opposition to the resurgent New Labour of the 90s that finally took Britain into the new millennium.

An illuminative study of the most powerful political movement in Britain today, Bevir presents new critiques and radical alternatives to New Labour.

Welfare reform is a central part of the modernisation programme adopted by the Labour Government since 1997. This book examines the role of Parliament in the formulation and scrutiny of welfare policy, focusing in particular on how MPs and Peers view their influence on policy.