ABSTRACT
If the British people are determined to rid themselves of poverty, they can do it. It is simply a matter of national housekeeping. The national resources can be laid out so that a minimum standard of living is available for everybody, enough to cover basic human needs. Unless they are translated into practical quantitative terms, social security proposals remain vague aspirations, such as the Trades Union Congress proposal for 40/- a week unemployment benefit for a single man, and the National Federation of Old Age Pensions Associations demand for pensions of 30/- a week at 60. The first stage is to determine the rates of standard benefit—the minimum income which will provide basic human needs. The next stage is to determine how many people will be without incomes in any year. The most difficult financial point about children’s allowances is their relation to income tax.
