CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2021
| Author | Nolan, Oisin |
|---|---|
| Title | Social Threat Or Social Problem? Changes And Continuities To The U.K. Government's Lone Parent Employment Policy Discourse Between 1997 And 2016 |
| Summary | Between 1997 and 2016, the labour market participation of lone parents in the UK rose to be an increasingly controversial issue in British social policymaking. During this time, successive welfare reforms have each sought to increase lone parent employment rates. Yet, hidden behind these reforms was a confrontation between two competing ideologies: that of market liberalism and social conservatism. On the one hand, from a market-liberal perspective, the state had a moral duty to liberate lone parents from their dependence on the welfare state through the poverty-alleviating force of employment. On the other hand, from a socially conservative perspective, the state had a responsibility to promote nuclear family structures, consisting of a male breadwinner and a female homemaker, against the corrupting forces of the modern economy that were subverting nuclear family structures. Accordingly, the disputed figure of the unemployed lone parent within political discourse represents a suitable avenue to investigate the confrontation of these two ideals within the UK’s welfare policymaking. Accordingly, this research presents an analysis of all statements made by British Government Ministers on the issue of lone parents, with a particular focus on their employment status, between 1997 and 2016. This research found that market-liberal discourses have become an entrenched paradigm in ministerial statements on the issue over the two decades of research. As such, the conclusions produced in this research provides evidence contrary to the assumption that the political discourse around the issue of lone parent employment in the UK has shifted back towards social conservatism after the Financial Crisis. |
| Supervisor | Kahanec, Martin |
| Department | Public Policy MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2021/nolan_oisin.pdf |
Visit the CEU Library.
© 2007-2021, Central European University