ABSTRACT
Social policies of the post-war consensus were based upon the notion of social citizenship. Marshall’s (1964) seminal work, arguing for a level of social spending to assist participation in social citizenship which would mirror that which had been attained in political citizenship, gained acceptance in the detailed policies which followed the Beveridge Report. Whilst the development of social citizenship had been criticized, these criticisms had come from the left, who claimed that insufficient resources had been invested to ensure the full participation of all citizens. The late 1970s saw the culmination of a new set of theories from the right of British politics which questioned the very basis of social citizenship.
