(Neil’s Note: I wrote this almost 10 years ago, in September 2006 to be precise. Prompted by a recent conversation between Ian B and Tom Rogers on the two IDS threads, I retrieved it from the bit-bucket in order to offer it for your delectation.)
In 1942, in the depths of war, William Beveridge authored a report. There were already state schemes in Britain for pensions, health and unemployment insurance. What Beveridge proposed to do was bring these all together into one giant, all-encompassing combine – the welfare state.
Many people liked Beveridge’s ideas. They liked the idea of a safety net to prevent them becoming poor. They liked the idea of financial security in their old age. They must have thought they were getting something for nothing. But they didn’t stop to think about the long-term costs. They didn’t think about the burden they would be storing up for people in the future.