Continuity and Change in the Welfare State : Social Security in the Republic of Ireland

This book offers an analysis of social security in Ireland from 1981 to 2016 - a period of immense economic and social change during which social provisions such as pensions and family benefits were downsized or diluted in many countries. It considers whether this important area of welfare state provision in Ireland changed, and the extent and pattern of change. In the first in-depth account of this aspect of social policy In Ireland, the book sets the welfare state in a historical and comparative context and reviews the impact of globalisation, politics and the financial crash on the scope and generosity of social security. The book will be of particular interest to scholars of welfare state politics and comparative social policy as well as to students of Irish social policy. Anthony McCashin, formerly Assistant Professor of Social Policy, is currently Visiting Research Fellow at the School of Social Work and Social Policy, Trinity College Dublin.-- Provided by publisher Front Matter ....Pages i-xv Ireland and Welfare State Change (Anthony McCashin)....Pages 1-8 Understanding Welfare State Change (Anthony McCashin)....Pages 9-51 The Emergence of Social Security in Ireland (Anthony McCashin)....Pages 53-83 Social Security in Ireland 1981–2016: A Framework for Analysis (Anthony McCashin)....Pages 85-119 Social Security: Expenditure and Benefits (Anthony McCashin)....Pages 121-148 Policy Change: An Interpretive Analysis (Anthony McCashin)....Pages 149-181 Social Insurance and Path Dependence: ‘A Long Hello to Beveridge’ (Anthony McCashin)....Pages 183-192 Continuity and Drift: Child Income Support (Anthony McCashin)....Pages 193-205 The State Pension: Layering and Retrenchment (Anthony McCashin)....Pages 207-237 Jobseekers: Conversion from Passive to Active? (Anthony McCashin)....Pages 239-252 Back Matter ....Pages 253-282 "This book offers an analysis of social security in Ireland from 1981 to 2016 - a period of immense economic and social change during which social provisions such as pensions and family benefits were downsized or diluted in many countries. It considers whether this important area of welfare state provision in Ireland changed, and the extent and pattern of change. In the first in-depth account of this aspect of social policy in Ireland, the book sets the welfare state in a historical and comparative context and reviews the impact of globalisation, politics and the financial crash on the scope and generosity of social security. The book will be of particular interest to scholars of welfare state politics and comparative social policy as well as to students of Irish social policy"--Back cover