DOCSLIB.ORG

Contemporary Perspectives and Engagements of Post-Crisis Social Movements Within the British Welfare State

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Contemporary Perspectives and Engagements of Post-Crisis Social Movements Within the British Welfare State Policy, protest and power: contemporary perspectives and engagements of post-crisis social movements within the British welfare state Gregory White PhD University of York Social Policy and Social Work March 2017 2 In memory of Mark Fisher (1968 – 2017) & Dedicated to the international anti-fascist movement 3 4 “Normally, when one challenges the conventional wisdom – that the current economic and political system is the only possible one – the first reaction you are likely to get is a demand for a detailed architectural blueprint of how an alternative system would work, down to the nature of its financial instruments, energy supplies, and policies of sewer maintenance. Next, one is likely to be asked for a detailed program of how this system will be brought into existence. Historically, this is ridiculous.” David Graeber “If, in fact, representational politics is only unreasonable, then it is to… moments of rational disruption, those events and occurrences that interrupt the everyday flow of a political discourse which thinks it’s being practical but is… incredibly unstable, that a true kind of [liberation] emerges.” Nina Power 5 6 Abstract Contemporary social policy in the UK is at a critical impasse: the ongoing government austerity programme has presented an unprecedented challenge to civil society organisations, trade unions and social movements as to questions of social justice and inequality. These challenges have manifested as: (1) tackling entrenched neoliberal narratives surrounding the welfare state; (2) organising and coordinating direct action and a (non-) institutional response. From the perspective of post-crisis social movements (such as Occupy London and UK Uncut), there has been a focus on non- institutional methods – often manifested in the form of direct action – to address social and economic injustices. The efficacy of such decisions to act have been widely researched. However, whilst the interest in researching links between activism and policy outcomes is strong, the lasting impact of such interventions on government policy – and, in particular, social policy – is less well-known. This thesis utilises fieldwork (conducted between 2013 and 2015) in order to better understand the relationship between post-crisis social movements and social policy. The investigation utilises mixed methods, including a deep textual analysis covering a spread of documents from trade union movements, social movements and political parties active in the UK between 2010 and 2015. In addition, it also utilises an analysis of interview data, collected from participants active in the same organisations. It examines institutional and non-institutional forms of activism – deployed in the post- crisis context – and analyses the potential for such activism, in pursuit of understanding how ‘outside’ voices and fringe political movements can engage with and even influence social policy – but also how they can be dismissed. Further, it will pose questions for social policy scholars as to how social movements can challenge certain policy prescriptions and be effective in both an institutional and non-institutional sphere. 7 8 Contents Abstract ........................................................................................................................ 7 Contents ....................................................................................................................... 9 List of figures ............................................................................................................. 13 List of tables ............................................................................................................... 14 Acknowledgements ................................................................................................... 15 Declaration ................................................................................................................. 18 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 19 i. Overview of the thesis ............................................................................... 19 ii. Framing the thesis ...................................................................................... 23 iii. Research aims, objectives and questions .............................................. 26 iv. Thesis structure .......................................................................................... 29 Chapter one ................................................................................................................ 33 History and context in social policy .................................................................... 33 1.1. The principles of social welfare ................................................................ 34 1.1.1. Capital and labour in conflict..................................................................... 38 1.2. Models of welfare state development ...................................................... 40 1.2.1. Functionalist accounts .............................................................................. 41 1.2.2. State-centred theory ................................................................................. 43 1.2.3. Power resources model ............................................................................ 46 1.2.4. Class struggle, social relations and the welfare state .............................. 51 1.3. Hegemony and power ................................................................................ 53 1.4. Examining interventions in the policy process ...................................... 58 1.5. Examining class, power and (non-) institutional struggle .................... 61 1.6. Explaining the role of social movements in social policy..................... 65 1.6.1. The role of social movements in social policy formation ......................... 67 1.6.2. Social movements and political transformation ........................................ 72 1.7. Conclusion................................................................................................... 77 Chapter two ................................................................................................................ 79 The political challenge of the economic crisis .................................................. 79 2.1. Where are we now? .................................................................................... 81 2.2. The crisis of democratic capitalism and the British welfare state ....... 83 9 2.2.1. Changes in the modern welfare state ....................................................... 85 2.2.2. A modern welfare state in crisis ................................................................ 88 2.2.3. Political engagement and the democratic deficit...................................... 90 2.2.4. A crisis of organisation on the left............................................................. 92 2.3. Which social movements (and why?) ...................................................... 95 2.4. Radical politics and economic challenges: the rise of Occupy ......... 100 2.5. Capitalist realism and critique ................................................................ 106 2.6. The politics of austerity and resistance to austerity politics ............. 110 2.7. From trade unions to social movements ............................................... 115 2.7.1. Explaining institutionalised and non-institutionalised engagement ....... 116 2.8. Conclusion................................................................................................. 123 Chapter three ........................................................................................................... 127 Methodology ......................................................................................................... 127 3.1. Researching social movements ............................................................. 128 3.1.1. Mapping the terrain ................................................................................. 129 3.2. Methods of understanding and interpreting the data .......................... 130 3.2.1. Selecting groups and organisations ....................................................... 132 3.2.2. Document analysis and textual analysis ................................................ 134 3.3. Collecting and processing the documentary data ............................... 137 3.3.1. Manual coding methods with documentary data.................................... 142 3.4. Using semi-structured interviews .......................................................... 145 3.4.1. Conducting the interviews ....................................................................... 148 3.5. Challenges in the field ............................................................................. 151 3.5.1. Ethical and legal challenges ................................................................... 152 3.5.2. Personal challenges in conducting research ......................................... 154 3.5.3. Limitations of the research design .......................................................... 157 3.6. Issues of reflexivity in activist-academic research .............................. 158 3.6.1. The activist-academic paradigm ............................................................. 164 3.7. Conclusion................................................................................................. 166 Chapter four ............................................................................................................
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Visiting Parliamentary Fellowship Celebrating 25 Years 1994-2019
    VISITING PARLIAMENTARY FELLOWSHIP CELEBRATING 25 YEARS 1994-2019 St Antony's College 1 Roger Goodman, Warden of St Antony’s At a recent breakfast with the students, it was decided that the College should do more to advertise what distinguished it from other colleges in Oxford. St Antony’s is: The Oxford college founded by a Frenchman The Oxford college with two Patron Saints (St Antony of Egypt and St Antony of Padua) The Oxford college where almost 90% of the 500 graduate students are from outside UK and the alumni come from 129 countries The Oxford college with international influence: ‘In the mid-2000s, 5% of the world’s foreign ministers had studied at St Antony’s’ (Nick Cohen, The Guardian, 8 Nov, 2015) The Oxford college mentioned in the novels of both John Le Carré and Robert Harris The Oxford college which holds the most weekly academic seminars and workshops The Oxford college with two award-winning new buildings in the past decade To this list can be added: St Antony’s is the Oxford college with a Visiting Parliamentary Fellowship (VPF). There is no other Oxford college that can boast such a list of parliamentarians responsible for a seminar programme over such a long period of time. The College is immensely proud of the Fellowship and greatly indebted to all those who have held it over the past 25 years. We were very grateful to those who have were able to come to the 25th anniversary celebration of the Fellowship programme at the House of Commons on 24 April 2019 and for the many generous letters from those who could not.
    [Show full text]
  • May 2010 May 2010
    national museum directors’ council May 2010 In this month's edition: • Election manifestos promise changes for national museums • Orphan works left out of Digital Economy Act • Over 260 venues participating in Museums at Night 2010 • Collecting survey highlights rise in object loans and joint acquisitions • Directors invited to nominate leading cultural philanthropists • Learning news - Local cultural offer for all children and call for learning outside the classroom entitlement • The Museum of London Docklands introduces free admission Section headings: NMDC NEWS International activity project NMDC has embarked on a new project looking at the international work of its members. UK museums are involved in a huge range of projects and partnerships with organisations all over the world. International activity includes: • International loans and touring exhibitions • Partnership working to share skills and expertise and to run joint research and conservation projects • Contributing to cultural diplomacy - building relationships with organisations in countries where formal government relations are difficult. • Involvement in international showcase events such as expos and biennales • Providing commercial consultancy services. NMDC is undertaking a survey of its members’ international work, to understand the current spread and types of international activity as well as different approaches to working internationally. The project findings will allow us to open a dialogue with Government departments beyond DCMS, to discuss the value of museums’ international work and how ministers and policy makers can most helpfully support museums’ international activity. The project also aims to help NMDC members to learn from each other and explore potential for collaboration on international projects, and to promote best practice across the museum sector by highlighting excellent and innovative projects.
    [Show full text]
  • The Progressive Alliance: Why Labour Needs It Jeremy Gilbert
    The Progressive Alliance: Why Labour Needs It Jeremy Gilbert A publication by Compass Published March 2017 by Compass By Jeremy Gilbert © Compass All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purpose of criticism or review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrievable system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of Compass . Compass 11-12 The Oval Bethnal Green London E2 9DT Compass is a home for those who want to build and be a part of a Good Society; one where equality, sustainability and democracy are not mere aspirations, but a living reality. We are founded on the belief that no single issue, organisation or political party can make a Good Society a reality by themselves so we have to work together to make it happen. Compass is a place where people come together to create the visions, alliances and actions to be the change we wish to see in the world. CONTENTS 4 About the author 5 Labour’s Reality 8 The Progressive Alliance Proposal 10 What Have the Liberal Democrats Ever Done For Us? 11 But..The Coalition!… 13 The Politics of Class 14 What is Labour For? 15 But the Liberals Don’t Like Us… 16 But there isn’t a Natural anti-Tory Alliance… 18 What about the Greens? 20 And What About the Nationalists? 21 If Not Us, Who? If Not Now, When? 3 The Progressive Alliance: Why Labour Needs It ABOUT THE AUTHOR ABOUT THIS PROJECT Jeremy Gilbert is Professor of Cultural and The progressive alliance, or indeed alliances, is Political Theory at the University of East London based on a series of local and national agreements and a member of the Compass Management to cooperate to secure the most progressive Committee.
    [Show full text]
  • Living Former Members of the House of Commons
    BRIEFING PAPER Number 05324, 7 January 2019 Living former Members Compiled by of the House of Sarah Priddy Commons Living former Members MPs are listed with any titles at the time they ceased to be an MP and the party they belonged to at the time. The list does not include MPs who now sit in the House of Lords. A list of members of the House of Lords who were Members of the House of Commons can be found on the Parliament website under House of Lords FAQs. Further information More detailed information on MPs who served between 1979 and 2010, including ministerial posts and party allegiance, covering their time in the UK Parliament and other legislatures, can be found in the Commons Library Briefing on Members 1979-2010. Association of Former Members of Parliament The PoliticsHome website has contact details for the Association of Former Members of Parliament. Parliament: facts and figures • Browse all briefings in the series This series of publications contains data on various subjects relating to Parliament and Government. Topics include legislation, MPs, select committees, debates, divisions and Parliamentary procedure. Feedback Any comments, corrections or suggestions for new lists should be sent to the Parliament and Constitution Centre. Suggestions for new lists welcomed. www.parliament.uk/commons-library | intranet.parliament.uk/commons-library | [email protected] | @commonslibrary Living former Members of the House of Commons Note: Does not include MPs who are now sit in the House of Lords Name Full Title Party* List Name Mr
    [Show full text]
  • Beyond Markets Beyond Machines
    RECLAIM MODERNITY BEYOND MARKETS BEYOND MACHINES Mark Fisher & Jeremy Gilbert Foreword by Zoe Williams RECLAIM MODERNITY ompass BEYOND MARKETS together for a good society BEYOND MACHINES Contents Part Three: What Is Democracy For? Foreword: • When Democracy Goes Right: • Zoe Williams 3 Maximising our Collective Intelligence 18 • The Paternalist State, The Neoliberal Introduction: 5 State, The Democratic State 19 • When the Market Goes Wrong: The Case of Public Television 19 • Democracy vs. Bureaucracy: Part One: The Legacy of the New Left 21 Where Are We now? Part Four: • A New Political Moment 6 Democracy for People - Not the • One Nation: The politics of the past, State or the Market or the politics of the future? 7 • Big Societies: The Crisis of the State 9 • The Reality of Neoliberalism: Part Two: No Freedom, No Fun 24 What Would A ‘good’ • Authority, Democracy and Collective Modernisation Look Like? Intelligence (if the state isn’t always right, and the market isn’t always right, then how do we know what’s right?) 25 • The Function of Management 27 • What Does it Mean to be Modern? 12 • The Trouble with Localism 29 • Blairite Modernisation: Not the Only Way 12 • Ourspace: Capitalism and Creativity in a Networked World 14 Part Five: Summing up and Moving On • Winning the War 31 • Summary 32 • Afterword: some economic, institutional and ecological implications 34 We include a series of ‘Real Radical Ideas’ boxes describing specific proposals and studies that flesh out some of our suggestions in concrete terms. Acknowledgements Thanks to Jo Littler, Neal Lawson, Will Davies and Michael Rustin for invaluable input and advice.
    [Show full text]
  • Sessional Returns
    House of Commons SESSIONAL RETURNS Session 2006–07 15 November 2006–30 October 2007 RETURNS to Orders of the Honourable The House of Commons, dated 13 November 2007—(The Chairman of Ways and Means) HOUSE, COMMITTEES OF THE WHOLE HOUSE, STANDING COMMITTEES AND SELECT COMMITTEES HC 1 House of Commons SESSIONAL RETURNS Session 2006–07 15 November 2006–30 October 2007 RETURNS to Orders of the Honourable The House of Commons, dated 13 November 2007—(The Chairman of Ways and Means) HOUSE, COMMITTEES OF THE WHOLE HOUSE, STANDING COMMITTEES AND SELECT COMMITTEES Ordered by The House of Commons to be printed 8 January 2008 HC 1 Published on 16 January 2008 by authority of the House of Commons London: The Stationery Office Limited £0.00 INTRODUCTORY NOTE The Sessional Returns were first published in consolidated form for Session 1986– 87. Returns of: i. Closure of debate in the House and in Standing Committees dating back to 1887 and 1907 respectively; ii. Delegated Legislation from Session 1974–75; iii. Private Bills and Private Business from 1981; iv. Sittings of the House from Session 1960–61; and v. Special Procedure Orders from Session 1972–73 have been placed in the House of Commons Library where they may be inspected by Members. Copies have also been supplied to the Parliamentary Archives, where they are available to the public for inspection. Requests for inspection should be addressed to the Parliamentary Archives, Houses of Parliament, London, SW1A 0PW (020 7219 3074). Hours of inspection are from 9.30am to 5.00pm Mondays to Fridays. The Public Bill Office of the House of Commons maintains a Public Bill Index from 1922 to the present day.
    [Show full text]
  • 9781784780968 Inventing the Future
    INVENTING THE FUTURE 99781784780968781784780968 InventingInventing thethe FutureFuture (454i)(454i) finalfinal pass.inddpass.indd i 004/09/20154/09/2015 114:24:534:24:53 99781784780968781784780968 InventingInventing thethe FutureFuture (454i)(454i) finalfinal pass.inddpass.indd iiii 004/09/20154/09/2015 114:24:534:24:53 INVENTING THE FUTURE Postcapitalism and a World Without Work Nick Srnicek and Alex Williams 99781784780968781784780968 InventingInventing thethe FutureFuture (454i)(454i) finalfinal pass.inddpass.indd iiiiii 004/09/20154/09/2015 114:24:534:24:53 First published by Verso 2015 © Nick Srnicek and Alex Williams 2015 All rights reserved The moral rights of the authors have been asserted 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2 Verso UK: 6 Meard Street, London W1F 0EG US: 20 Jay Street, Suite 1010, Brooklyn, NY 11201 www.versobooks.com Verso is the imprint of New Left Books ISBN-13: 978-1-78478-096-8 (PB) eISBN-13: 978-1-78478-098-2 (US) eISBN-13: 978-1-78478-097-5 (UK) British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress Typeset in Electra LT Std by Hewer Text UK Ltd, Edinburgh, Scotland Printed in the US by Maple Press 99781784780968781784780968 InventingInventing thethe FutureFuture (454i)(454i) finalfinal pass.inddpass.indd iviv 004/09/20154/09/2015 114:24:534:24:53 Contents Acknowledgements vii Int roduction 1 1. Our Political Common Sense: Introducing Folk Politics 5 2. Why Aren’t We Winning? A Critique of Today’s Left 25 3.
    [Show full text]
  • From Suez to Iraq 63
    Debate 8/3/05 4:11 AM Page 62 62 From Suez Mr. Speaker: We now come to the main business, and I inform the House that I have selected the to Iraq amendment in the name of the Prime Minister … Adam Price (Carmarthen, East and Dinefwr) (Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales): I beg to move, That this House believes that there should be a Adam Price MP select committee of seven honourable Members, Margaret Beckett MP being members of Her Majesty’s Privy Council, to Jeremy Corbyn MP review the way in which the responsibilities of Government were discharged in relation to Iraq Alex Salmond MP and all matters relevant thereto, in the period leading up to military action in that country in March 2003 and in its aftermath. It is an honour to move this motion on behalf of my hon. Friends and of right hon. and hon. Members on all sides of the House of Commons. It is the culmination of a long campaign, and it is a debate that is long overdue. The motion has cross- party support because the issue at its heart is far bigger than one of party politics. It is about accountability. It is about the monumental On 31 October 2006, the catastrophe of the Iraq war, which is the worst House of Commons foreign policy disaster certainly since Suez, and discussed the Iraq war in the possibly since Munich. It is about the morass in first formal (albeit very brief) which, regrettably, we still find ourselves. It is also debate since the invasion of about a breakdown in our system of government – 2003.
    [Show full text]
  • Labour Commitments to FOI
    The Campaign for Freedom of Information Suite 102, 16 Baldwins Gardens, London EC1N 7RJ Tel: 020 7831 7477 Fax: 020 7831 7461 Email: [email protected] Web: www.cfoi.org.uk Labour Commitments to Freedom of Information 12 September 2000 rev. 2.0 Hon. President: Godfrey Bradman Parliamentary Co-Chairs: Helen Jackson MP Co-Chairs: James Cornford, Neil McIntosh Archy Kirkwood MP Director: Maurice Frankel Richard Shepherd MP Campaign for Freedom of Information Ltd. Registered in England no. 1781526. Registered office as above Labour Commitments to Freedom of Information General Election Manifesto Pledges October 1974 Promised to “replace the Official Secrets Act by a measure to put the burden on the public authorities to justify withholding information.” April 1979 “In central Government, we will... Introduce a Freedom of Information Bill to provide a system of open government, and enact proposals made by the Government in its White Paper to reform Section Two of the Official Secrets Act.” June 1983 “Labour will take action to enhance democratic rights and ensure greater openness and accountability in the institutions of government... We shall introduce a Freedom of Information Bill, providing for a genuine system of open government and placing the onus on the authorities to justify withholding information.” June 1987 “…the new Parliament will swiftly enact many…worthwhile measures. These will cost little to implement but produce significant improvement in the quality of administration, provision and response to the needs of ordinary citizens. They will include: A Freedom of Information Act, to be accompanied by the repeal of Section Two of the Official Secrets Act.” March 1992 “We will start in our first parliamentary session with a Freedom of Information Act which will open up government to the people.
    [Show full text]
  • A Study of the Labour Party Membership Technical
    A STUDY OF THE LABOUR PARTY MEMBERSHIP TECHNICAL REPORT Patrick Seyd Paul Whiteley David Broughton INTRODUCTION Writing in the early 1960s, Jean Blondel stated that there had not yet been a general study of the membership of any British political party. By the late 1980s, this was still the case. Despite the fact that party members and activists appeared to play an important role in British politics, they remained a group whose attitudes and activities had long been neglected by academics. There had been some studies of constituency parties and some empirical research conducted on local and national elites as well as Labour party conference delegates. What was missing was a national representative study of ordinary party members. There were two obvious reasons for this omission. Firstly, there were problems in obtaining a sample of party members which could be regarded as representative. None of the parties with the exception of the SDP had comprehensive centralised records of their membership which could be used as a sampling frame by researchers. This meant that obtaining a sample would have been extremely expensive. The Labour Party however did begin to introduce a national membership scheme in the late 1980s. Secondly, Robert McKenzie's thesis that the main function of party members was to be relatively passive supporters of their respective parliamentary leaderships was very influential. This gave rise to the perception that party members did not play a very important role in politics and were thus not worth investigating. Recent constitutional changes in the Labour party challenged this view. Party members have now been given important roles to play in terms of candidate selection as well as policy formulation.
    [Show full text]
  • Rainbow Parliament in Scotland
    The Constitution Unit Bulletin Issue 23 Monitor June 2003 Rainbow Parliament in Scotland Elections to the Scottish Parliament and National in Glasgow to 53% in West of Scotland. In Wales Assembly for Wales were held on 1 May 2003. In turnout was down by 8% on 1999, and ranged Scotland, the Labour-Liberal Democrat coalition from 50% in Ynys Mon to 25% in Alyn and was returned with a majority of three seats. In Deeside. Wales, Labour formed a single-party administration with a majority of one. The turnout in both elections appears to be a reflection of the low stature of the Parliament and Scotland saw a shift towards smaller parties and the Assembly. John Curtice of Strathclyde independents, and away from Labour and the University found that in 2001 66% of Scots SNP on both the first vote, second vote and the believed that the UK government has most total seats. The Greens now have seven seats, influence in Scotland, and only 15% the Scottish the Socialists six, and there are seats for the Parliament. In contrast in 1999, only 39% Scottish Senior Citizens Unity Party (SSCUP), thought the UK government would be the most and prominent independents Dennis Canavan, influential body once the Scottish Parliament was Margo MacDonald and Jean Turner. In Wales, up and running. no small parties won seats but they did increase their vote. The Electoral System The use of the additional member electoral In Scotland of the 129 MSPs elected, 26 (20%) system had different effects in Scotland and are new and 51 (40%) are women.
    [Show full text]
  • K-Punk at Large
    simon hammond K-PUNK AT LARGE ark fisher, the English writer and cultural critic, is still perhaps best known for his trenchant first book, Capitalist Realism (2009).* The maiden title of an insurgent publisher, it was an unexpected success upon publica- Mtion, translated into several languages. Its excoriation of the shrunken imaginative horizons of neoliberalism had been formulated during the market triumphalism of the boom years—developed and rehearsed by Fisher on his cult blog, k-punk—but the book appeared in a dramati- cally different context, as the world reeled from financial crisis. It was a propitious moment. As Fisher emphasized in his diagnosis, the effect of the crisis had been Janus-faced, at once calling the system into ques- tion and yet, by governmental response, seemingly only to confirm it as without alternative. Developments in Britain would compound this: the following year the Conservatives were returned to power, with austerity measures soon provoking a fresh wave of dissent. Fisher, though pri- marily a cultural theorist, became part of a galvanized milieu in this new conjuncture, emerging in the more turbulent climate as an outlying but influential presence on the British left. Yet after the resurgence of the parliamentary left that followed, Fisher became muted and soon fell silent. A second book, Ghosts of My Life (2014), had followed Capitalist Realism; a third, The Weird and the Eerie (2016) appeared shortly before Fisher took his own life in January 2017, aged 48. His death can perhaps appear even more tragic for its timing: personally, because he had at last acquired a relatively secure academic post after a career of piecemeal teaching and precarity, to help support his beloved companion and son; politically, because mental illness had not only inhibited his involvement in a sea-change that he had longed for, but ultimately prevented him from witnessing Corbynism’s surge in the snap election of that summer.
    [Show full text]