ABSTRACT
Seebohm Rowntree impacted on the political debate in several important respects. By defining a mere physical efficiency income line he brought his poverty study immediately into the mainstream of political debate as it erupted over the issue of national degeneration in the aftermath of the Boer War. Rowntree's attempt to produce a subsistence definition of poverty resulted in minimum income levels those obtained in reality by many working-class families. Rowntree's minimum income level guaranteed a standard of living in excess of that enjoyed by many working-class families. One event had occurred before Beveridge had begun any serious thinking about his report and which undermined the political attractiveness of a subsistence level national insurance benefit scheme. The quest for national efficiency therefore gained new and widespread political support. Most Members expressed little interest in the issue that Barbara Castle raised, namely, the relationship between the level of national insurance and national assistance rates.
