The term ‘welfare state’ is often used in a rather indiscriminate manner. The emphasis is on ‘welfare’ rather than on ‘state’. What is meant is usually not so much a ‘state’ as a regime for the provision of welfare programmes. The state could play a role in such provision, whether directly or indirectly, but this does not necessarily have to be so. A more precise term would be ‘welfare society’, with the state being a variable in it.