Conditionality, Discretion and TH Marshall's ‘Right to Welfare’

Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law, 2019

20 Pages Posted: 18 Feb 2020

See all articles by Ciara Fitzpatrick

Ciara Fitzpatrick

Ulster University

Grainne McKeever

Ulster University at Jordanstown

Mark Simpson

Ulster University

Date Written: January 22, 2020

Abstract

In an era of increasing interest in and concern about destitution in the UK, the leading studies place social security problems among the principal causes. This suggests that destitution is a failure of social citizenship, with social protection systems unable or unwilling to underwrite the guarantee of a modicum of economic welfare that, according to Marshall, forms the essence of the citizen’s social rights. This article documents how the establishment of a comprehensive welfare state in the mid-20th century has been eroded by a series of social security reforms that have turned the focus back on local government and the voluntary sector for the support of the ‘undeserving’ migrant and unemployed poor. Empirical findings from a major study of destitution in the UK illustrate how the fulfilment of social ‘rights’ is becoming dependent on knowing where to seek support, having access to the right gatekeeper and enduring social stigma. The authors consider the compatibility of a welfare state characterised by strict conditionality, decision maker discretion and gaps in the safety net with the Marshallian ‘right to welfare’.

Keywords: social rights; citizenship; welfare state; destitution; conditionality; discretion

JEL Classification: K39

Suggested Citation

Fitzpatrick, Ciara and McKeever, Gráinne and Simpson, Mark, Conditionality, Discretion and TH Marshall's ‘Right to Welfare’ (January 22, 2020). Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law, 2019, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3523898 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3523898

Ciara Fitzpatrick

Ulster University ( email )

Northland Road
Londonderry, BT48 7JL
Northern Ireland

Gráinne McKeever (Contact Author)

Ulster University at Jordanstown ( email )

Newtownabbey
County Antrim BT37 OQB, Northern Ireland
United Kingdom
+44 (0)28 9036 6340 (Phone)

Mark Simpson

Ulster University ( email )

Northland Road
Londonderry, BT48 7JL
Northern Ireland

Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?

Paper statistics

Downloads
70
Abstract Views
451
Rank
632,223
PlumX Metrics