Social Security and the 'shrinking state'

In recent decades in the UK and beyond, the principle of social security has been under sustained attack. It is sometimes said that the world has changed so much since the early days of the ‘welfare state’ that the system is no longer fit for purpose. Among other criticisms, it is often claimed that current levels of social security are unaffordable and undermine people’s self-reliance by encouraging them to become dependent on the state. However there is mounting evidence to the contrary, argues author Savitri Hensman, though this is widely ignored by politicians and much of the media. In this paper she sets out the reasons for the dissolution of a notion of 'social security' for all. The concluding argument is for a refunding of the notion of good government within a context of mutualism, drawing on the influence of civil society and the contribution of Christians and others.