ABSTRACT
In social policy the record of the Heath government appears to be a catalogue of broken promises. The commitment to reduce government expenditure was followed by the highest rise in social expenditure of any postwar government. The remodelling of social policy was an integral part of the extensive planning process carried out by the Party while in opposition between 1964 and 1970. The basic principles of reform had been agreed by the time of the 1966 election. Social security was by far the most costly welfare service, consuming over one-third of social expenditure and, throughout the Heath government, was the responsibility of one of its leading later detractors, Sir Keith Joseph. Individual welfare was recognised to exceed material well-being and to include, among other things, political freedom and the opportunity for self-enhancement. The market as much as the State was the guarantor of this broader concept of welfare, and so competitive efficiency and economic growth had to be assured.
