The Politics of Poverty
| DOI | 10.1177/026455058903600401 |
| Published date | 01 December 1989 |
| Date | 01 December 1989 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
146
The
Politics
of
Poverty
Government
social
policy
has
altered
the
whole
structure
of
the
welfare
state
in
an
anti-welfare
climate.
John
Chalmers,
Senior
Probation
Officer
in
Leicester,
outlines
the
recent
history
of
benefit
cuts
and
maintains
that
we
cannot
avoid
confronting
the
political
issues,
whether
in
defence
of
social
work
values
or
in
pursuing
priority
work
with
high
risk
young
offenders.
l1li8&
ecent
’reforms’
of
the
Welfare
State
have
made
radical
though
highly
controversial
changes,
pushed
through
with
unprecented
speed
and
deter-
mination,
achieving
a
’revolution
by
legislation’.
This
has
happened
at
a
time
when
concepts
of
welfare
are
not
in
fashion,
and
some
of
the
reforms
have
had
a
strong
level
of
public
support,
fostered
by
a
mostly
hostile
media
Perhaps
some
reaction
to
the
values
of
the
Welfare
State
was
inevitable,
though
the
tide
of
public
opinion
has
now
begun
to
change
in
favour
of
welfare
provision.
However,
the
Welfare
State
may
never
return
to
what
it
was
before,
even
if
we
have
a
change
of
govern-
ment
at
the
next
election.
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