This book provides a major new examination of the current dilemmas of liberal anti-racist policies in European societies, linking two discourses that are normally quite separate in social science: immigration and ethnic relations research on the one hand, and the political economy of the welfare state on the other. The authors rephrase Gunnar Myrdal's questions in An American Dilemma with reference to Europe's current dual crisis - that of the established welfare state facing a declining capacity to maintain equity, and that of the nation state unable to accommodate incremental ethnic diversity. They compare developments across the European Union with the contemporary US experience of poverty, race, and class. They highlight the major moral-political dilemma emerging across the EU out of the discord between declared ideals of citizenship and actual exclusion from civil, political, and social rights. Pursuing this overall European predicament, the authors provide a critical scrutiny of the EU's growing policy involvement in the fields of international migration, integration, discrimination, and racism. They relate current policy issues to overall processes of economic integration and efforts to develop a European 'social dimension'. Drawing on case-study analysis of migration, the changing welfare state, and labour markets in the UK, Germany, Italy, and Sweden, the book charts the immense variety of Europe's social and political landscape. Trends of divergence and convergence between single countries are related to the European Union's emerging policies for diversity and social inclusion. It is, among other things, the plurality of national histories and contemporary trajectories that makes the European Union's predicament of migration, welfare, and citizenship different from the American experience. These reasons also account in part for why it is exceedingly difficult to advance concerted and consistent approaches to one of the most pressing policy issues of our time. Very few of the existing sociological texts which compare different European societies on specific topics are accessible to a broad range of scholars and students. The European Societies series will help to fill this gap in the literature, and attempt to answer questions such as: Is there really such a thing as a 'European model' of society? Do the economic and political integration processes of the European Union also imply convergence in more general aspects of social life, such a family or religious behaviour? What do the societies of Western Europe have in common with those further to the East? This series will cover the main social institutions, although not every author will cover the full range of European countries. As well as surveying existing knowledge in a manner useful to students, each book will also seek to contribute to our growing knowledge of what remains in many respects a sociologically unknown continent. The series editor is Colin Crouch.

This book is the first comprehensive volume exploring an issue of growing importance to policy makers, academics, housing practitioners and students. It brings together contributions from the most prominent scholars in the field to provide a range of theoretical perspectives, critical analysis and empirical research findings about the role of housing and urban governance in addressing anti-social behaviour. Contributors assess constructions of anti-social behaviour in policy discourse, identify how housing is increasingly central to the governance of anti-social behaviour and critically evaluate a wide range of measures used by housing and other agencies to tackle what is perceived to be a growing social problem. Although the book focuses on the UK, comparative international perspectives are provided from France, Australia and the United States. The book covers definitions of anti-social behaviour and policy responses including key new legislation and the legal role of social landlords in governing anti-social behaviour. There is comprehensive coverage of key measures including eviction, probationary tenancies, Anti-social Behaviour Orders, mediation and Acceptable Behaviour Contracts, and of innovative developments such as gated communities, intensive support services and the use of private security. "Housing, urban governance and anti-social behaviour" will be of interest to academics, policy-makers, practitioners and students in the fields of housing, urban studies, social policy, legal studies and criminology.

As events highlight deep divisions in attitudes between America and Europe, this is a very timely study of different approaches to the problems of domestic inequality and poverty. Based on careful and systematic analysis of national data, the authors describe just how much the two continents differ in their level of State engagement in the redistribution of income. Discussing various possible economic explanations for the difference, they cover different levels of pre-tax income, openness, and social mobility; they survey politico-historical differences such as the varying physical size of nations, their electoral and legal systems, and the character of their political parties, as well as their experiences of war; and they examine sociological explanations, which include different attitudes to the poor and notions of social responsibility. Most importantly, they address attitudes to race, calculating that attitudes to race explain half the observed difference in levels of public redistribution of income. This important and provocative analysis will captivate academic and serious lay readers in economics and welfare systems.

To what extent has the process of European integration re-drawn the boundaries of national welfare states? What are the effects of such re-drawing? Boundaries count: they are essential in bringing together individuals, groups, and territorial units, and for activating or strengthening shared ties between them. If the profile of boundaries changes over time, we might expect significant consequences on bonding dynamics, i.e. on the way solidarity is structured in a given political community. The book addresses these two questions in a broad historical and comparative perspective. The first chapter sets out a novel theoretical framework which re-conceptualizes the welfare state as a 'bounded space' characterized by a distinct spatial politics. This reconceptualization takes as a starting point the 'state-building tradition' in political science and in particular the work of Stein Rokkan. The second chapter briefly outlines the early emergence and expansion of European welfare states till World War II. Chapters 3 and 4 analyse the relationship between domestic welfare state developments and the formation of a supranational European Community between the 1960s and the 2000s, illustrating how the process of European integration has increasingly eroded the social sovereignty of the nation-state. Chapter 5 focuses on new emerging forms of sub-national and trans-national social protection, while Chapter 6 discusses current trends and future perspectives for a re-structuring of social protection at the EU level. While there is no doubt that European integration has significantly altered the boundaries of national welfare, de-stabilizing delicate political and institutional equilibria, the book concludes by offering some suggestions on how a viable system of multi-level social protection could possibly emerge within the new EU wide boundary configuration.

To what extent has the process of European integration re-drawn the boundaries of national welfare states? What are the effects of such re-drawing? Boundaries count: they are essential in bringing together individuals, groups, and territorial units, and for activating or strengthening shared ties between them. If the profile of boundaries changes over time, we might expect significant consequences on bonding dynamics, i.e. on the way solidarity is structured in a given political community. The book addresses these two questions in a broad historical and comparative perspective. The first chapter sets out a novel theoretical framework which re-conceptualizes the welfare state as a 'bounded space' characterized by a distinct spatial politics. This reconceptualization takes as a starting point the 'state-building tradition' in political science and in particular the work of Stein Rokkan. The second chapter briefly outlines the early emergence and expansion of European welfare states till World War II. Chapters 3 and 4 analyse the relationship between domestic welfare state developments and the formation of a supranational European Community between the 1960s and the 2000s, illustrating how the process of European integration has increasingly eroded the social sovereignty of the nation-state. Chapter 5 focuses on new emerging forms of sub-national and trans-national social protection, while Chapter 6 discusses current trends and future perspectives for a re-structuring of social protection at the EU level. While there is no doubt that European integration has significantly altered the boundaries of national welfare, de-stabilizing delicate political and institutional equilibria, the book concludes by offering some suggestions on how a viable system of multi-level social protection could possibly emerge within the new EU wide boundary configuration.

Despite the improved supply and quality of housing in the UK and Europe over the last 60 years, the future of housing remains uncertain. Will the supply of new housing meet demand? Is decent, affordable housing an achievable goal? How far will governments seek to shape the market? How will they respond to demographic pressures in different parts of the country? Will housing wealth become a central issue in wider debates about the future of public services? This book looks at the big questions affecting the future of housing as a key indicator of social and economic well-being in the 21st century. It brings together specially commissioned contributions by leading housing experts who explore a wide range of themes and issues affecting the prospects for the coming 20 years or more. Drawing on the evidence of the past and present they analyse the implications of current trends to consider how markets and governments might respond to the challenges ahead. The book is not a work of prophecy or a manifesto for action. It is designed to stimulate and contribute to informed debate about possible futures and what can be done to influence what happens. "Building on the past" will be of interest to all those concerned about the future of housing, neighbourhoods and communities over the next 20 years.

'A well-researched, enjoyable and thoughtful book'. - Calum Chace, Forbes Extraordinary innovations in technology promise to transform the world, but how realistic is the claim that AI will change our lives? In this much needed book the acclaimed economist Roger Bootle responds to the fascinating economic questions posed by the age of the robot, steering a path away from tech jargon and alarmism towards a rational explanation of the ways in which the AI revolution will affect us all. Tackling the implications of Artificial Intelligence on growth, productivity, inflation and the distribution of wealth and power, THE AI ECONOMY also examines coming changes to the the way we educate, work and spend our leisure time. A fundamentally optimistic view which will help you plan for changing times, this book explains AI and leads you towards a more certain future.

This collection of essays addresses a topical subject of current importance, namely the impact of the EU on national welfare state systems. The volume aims to question the perception that matters of social welfare remain for Member States of the EU to decide, and that the EU's influence in this field is minor or incidental. The various essays trace the different ways in which the EU is having an impact on the laws and practices of the Member States in the area of welfare, looking at issues of social citizenship and the influence of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, as well as at the impact of EU economic freedoms - competition law and free movement law in particular - on both 'services of general economic interest' and on national health-care systems. The significance of the so-called Open Method of Coordination in developing a new compromise on 'social Europe' is discussed, as well as the tensions between market liberalization and social protection in the specific context of this transnational political system are examined. While the various authors clearly have different views on the likelihood of a robust form of European social solidarity developing, the book as a whole suggests the emergence of a distinctive, although partial and fragmented, European Union welfare dimension.

All over Europe post-Second World War large-scale housing estates face physical, economic, social and cultural problems. This book presents the key findings of a major EU-funded research programme into the restructuring of twenty-nine large-scale housing estates in Northern, Western, Southern and Eastern Europe. Policy and practice between and within the ten countries studied - UK, the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany, Poland, Hungary, Slovenia, Italy, Spain, and France - is compared. While existing literature focuses on the negative aspects of large-scale housing estates, this book starts from the premise that the estates can be transformed into attractive places to live and focuses on the possibilities of sustainability and renewal through social, physical and policy actions. Specifically, the book explains the origins and nature of contemporary problems on the estates; examines which policy objectives, measures and processes have had the greatest impact; assesses and compares a wide range of local, regional and national initiatives; discusses current ideas and philosophies, such as 'place making' and 'collaborative planning' that are likely to influence future policy and practice and provides good practice guidance for neighbourhood sustainability and renewal. Written by a multi-national team of experts and drawing on original fieldwork, the book provides unique comparative insights into the present and future position of large-scale housing estates in Europe. Restructuring large-scale housing estates in Europe is an invaluable resource for a wide audience of academics, researchers, students and policy makers in the fields of housing, urban studies, community studies, regeneration, planning and social policy.

Teenage parenthood is generally considered a 'bad thing' in Western Europe and the US, but there has been little discussion of the cultural differences in how teenage parenthood is viewed and what sorts of policy and practice interventions are therefore appropriate. The debate of teenage pregnancy and parenthood continues to be a topical media and political issue, and a contested policy area. Covering the controversial issues, this book contributes to the debate, filling the gap in the current market. The strong chapter selection looks at areas such as: education; social policy and welfare reforms in the UK and US; issues for young fathers; child sex abuse; and girls with emotional and behavioral difficulties. This is invaluable reading for those working on government strategies to reduce teen pregnancies and those working in sex education and youth care.

Based on much original research, this book examines in detail the emergence of retirement as a social issue in the period 1878 to 1948, focusing in particular on the evolution of state pensions. Important new insights are offered into the role of key individuals, such as William Blackley, Joseph Chamberlain, and Charles Booth and interest groups, such as the Charity Organisation Society, the friendly societies, the labour movement and pensioners' organisations. Subsequent sections examine the shift to contributory pensions as part of the 'new Conservatism' of the 1920s, the debate on retirement pensions in the following decade, the treatment of old age poverty by the inter-war social surveys, and the concern over the 'burden' of an ageing population in the late 1930s. The book concludes with a radical reinterpretation of the 1942 Beveridge Report. This book promises to be the definitive history of state pensions in Britain.

Tax-benefit models are powerful tools for the analysis of the impact of policy reform, in regular use around the world in government and research organizations. This study focuses on one particular model, POLIMOD. The authors provide an illustration of the type of analysis that can be performed, document the inner layers of data manipulation and model construction that shape its outputs, and examine the reliability of those outputs based on a validation against external sources.

On the Margins of Inclusion starts from the premise that understanding the nature of contemporary work and exclusion from employment is central to understanding the experience of social exclusion in our society today. Through close ethnographic study of people living on a South London housing estate, the book highlights collective strategies and responses to labor market and welfare changes, and considers how these responses can, in themselves, contribute to patterns of community-based exclusion. The book provides a compelling and vivid portrait of lives at the insecure, low-paid end of the labor market, and offers a fascinating account of how different groups of economically marginal people have adapted to, and negotiate, the offerings of a post-industrial labor market and a welfare system geared towards reintegrating them into formal employment.

This book makes the case for the welfare state. Nearly every government in the developed world offers some form of social protection, and measures to improve the social and economic well-being of its citizens. However, the provision of welfare is under attack. The critics argue that welfare states are illegitimate, that things are best left to the market, and that welfare has bad effects on the people who receive it. If we need to be reminded why we ought to have welfare, it is because so many people have come think that we should not. Arguments for Welfare is a short, accessible guide to the arguments. Looking at the common ideas and reoccurring traits of welfare policy across the world it discusses: *The Meaning of the 'Welfare State' *The Moral Basis of Social Policy *Social Responsibility *The Limits of Markets *Public Service Provision *The Role of Government With examples from around the world, the book explains why social welfare services should be provided and explores how the principles are applied. Most importantly, it argues for the welfare state's continued value to society. Arguments for Welfare is an ideal primer for practitioners keen to get to grips with the fundamentals of social policy and students of social policy, social work, sociology and politics.

This book offers a fresh new approach to the study of housing. Most current approaches tend to ignore or downplay the perceptions and attitudes of individuals in the production and consumption of housing. This book explores the meaning that housing has for individuals and households by examining 'housing pathways'. Although drawing on British experiences, the methodology and theoretical framework used are applicable to the study of housing in any national context. experience and the housing routes that they take over time. The book argues that housing has increasingly become a means to an end rather than an end in itself. The end is personal fulfilment and the main task of housing research is to elucidate the links. In this pursuit, the concepts of identity and lifestyle are key. and links this to changing discourses of the family; explores the important interconnections between housing and employment; considers the relationship between people and the physical aspects of a house and its location; looks at housing in terms of lifestyle choice from youth to old age; discusses the implications of the pathways approach for housing policy and future research in the field. housing and particularly to those wishing to engage with the new research agenda set out here.

The politics of the Third Way reflects an attempt by many contemporary social democracies to forge a new political settlement which is fitted to the conditions of a modern society and new global economy, but which retains the goals of social cohesion and egalitarianism. It seeks to differentiate itself as distinct from the political ideologies of the New Right and Old Left. Though commonly linked to the US Democratic Party in the Clinton era, it can also be traced to the political discourses in European social democratic parties during the mid-1990s, most notably in France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. In social policy terms the model attempts to transcend the old alternatives of the state and the market. Instead, civil society, government, and the market are viewed as interdependent and equal partners in the provision of welfare, and the challenge for government is to create equilibrium between these three pillars. The individual is to be 'pushed' towards self-help, and independent, active citizenship, while business and government must contribute to economic and social cohesion.
This book provides a comprehensive and critical analysis of 'Third Way' social policy and policy processes in the welfare systems of industrialized economies, and examines the extent to which 'Third Way' ideology and institutional structures converge or vary in different national settings. It examines substantive areas of public policy in a broad comparative context of key trends and debates. By assessing the extent to which the post-war social contract in developed welfare states is being renegotiated, the text contributes to a better understanding of the current restructuring and modernization of the State. Finally the book explores the implications of the new politics of welfare for theorizing inequality, social justice, and the future of welfare.

This book introduces the concept of new social risks in welfare state studies and explains their relevance to the comparative understanding of social policy in Europe. New social risks arise from shifts in the balance of work and family life as a direct result of the declining importance of the male breadwinner family, changes in the labor market, and the impact of globalization on national policy-making. They differ from the old social risks of the standard industrial life-course, which were concerned primarily with interruptions to income from sickness, unemployment, retirement, and similar issues. New social risks pose new challenges for the welfare policies of European countries, such as the care of children and the elderly, more equal opportunities, the activation of labor markets and the management of needs that arise from welfare state reform, and new opportunities for the coordination of policies at the EU level.
The book includes detailed and up-to-date case studies of policy development across these areas in the major European countries. These studies, written by leading experts, are organized in a comparative framework which is followed throughout the book. They highlight the way in which national welfare state regimes and institutional arrangements shape policy-making to meet new social risks.
A major feature of this volume is the analysis of developments at the EU level and their interaction with national policies. The EU has been largely unsuccessful in its interventions in old social risk policy, but appears to have more success in its attempts to coordinate policy for new social risks. Experience here may provide lessons for future developments in EU policy-making.
The comparative framework of the book seeks to inform an understanding of the development of new social risks in Europe and of the particular political opportunities and challenges that result. It provides an original analysis of pressing issues at the forefront of European welfare policy debate and locates it at the heart of current theoretical debates.

Black women have traditionally represented the canvas on which many debates about poverty and welfare have been drawn. For a quarter century after the publication of the notorious Moynihan report, poor black women were tarred with the same brush: "ghetto moms" or "welfare queens" living off the state, with little ambition or hope of an independent future. At the same time, the history of the civil rights movement has all too often succumbed to an idolatry that stresses the centrality of prominent leaders while overlooking those who fought daily for their survival in an often hostile urban landscape.
In this collective biography, Rhonda Y. Williams takes us behind, and beyond, politically expedient labels to provide an incisive and intimate portrait of poor black women in urban America. Drawing on dozens of interviews, Williams challenges the notion that low-income housing was a resounding failure that doomed three consecutive generations of post-war Americans to entrenched poverty. Instead, she recovers a history of grass-roots activism, of political awakening, and of class mobility, all facilitated by the creation of affordable public housing. The stereotyping of black women, especially mothers, has obscured a complicated and nuanced reality too often warped by the political agendas of both the left and the right, and has prevented an accurate understanding of the successes and failures of government anti-poverty policy.
At long last giving human form to a community of women who have too often been treated as faceless pawns in policy debates, Rhonda Y. Williams offers an unusually balanced and personal account of the urban war on poverty from the perspective of those who fought, and lived, it daily.

The politics of the Third Way reflects an attempt by many contemporary social democracies to forge a new political settlement which is fitted to the conditions of a modern society and new global economy, but which retains the goals of social cohesion and egalitarianism. It seeks to differentiate itself as distinct from the political ideologies of the New Right and Old Left. Though commonly linked to the US Democratic Party in the Clinton era, it can also be traced to the political discourses in European social democratic parties during the mid-1990s, most notably in France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. In social policy terms the model attempts to transcend the old alternatives of the state and the market. Instead, civil society, government, and the market are viewed as interdependent and equal partners in the provision of welfare, and the challenge for government is to create equilibrium between these three pillars. The individual is to be 'pushed' towards self-help, and independent, active citizenship, while business and government must contribute to economic and social cohesion.
This book provides a comprehensive and critical analysis of 'Third Way' social policy and policy processes in the welfare systems of industrialized economies, and examines the extent to which 'Third Way' ideology and institutional structures converge or vary in different national settings. It examines substantive areas of public policy in a broad comparative context of key trends and debates. By assessing the extent to which the post-war social contract in developed welfare states is being renegotiated, the text contributes to a better understanding of the current restructuring and modernization of the State. Finally the book explores the implications of the new politics of welfare for theorizing inequality, social justice, and the future of welfare.

Imperial Inequalities takes Western European empires and their legacies as the explicit starting point for discussion of issues of taxation and welfare. In doing so, it addresses the institutional and fiscal processes involved in modes of extraction, taxation, and the hierarchies of welfare distribution across Europe's global empires. The idea of 'imperial inequalities' provides a conceptual frame for thinking about the long-standing colonial histories that are responsible, at least in part, for the shape of present inequalities. This wide-ranging volume challenges existing historiographical accounts that present states and empires as separate categories. Instead, it views them as co-constitutive units by focusing upon the politics of economic governance across imperial spaces. Authors examine the fiscal innovations that enabled European empires to finance their expansion, the politics of redistribution that were important to constructing the veneer of legitimacy of taxation, and the fiscal mechanisms that were established to ensure that the imperial contours of inequality continued to define the postcolonial world. These diverse contributions provide new resources for how we think about issues of taxation and welfare across the longue duree. This book is relevant to United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 10, Reduced inequalities -- .

Although a strong indicator of social status, home ownership has rarely emerged as a topic in social inequality research. This book compares twelve countries--the United States, Germany, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Israel--to determine the interdependence of social inequality and homeownership attainment over the life course. Examining countries that are similar with respect to socioeconomic development, but different in regard to their housing policies, the authors show that housing policies matter and are largely consistent with a country's general approach in the provision of welfare.
This book presents a valuable contribution to the social stratification literature, which traditionally has neglected the dimension of home ownership. It goes beyond most housing studies by adopting a life-course framework and longitudinal approach. The empirical findings provide evidence that in all countries under study--even those of the social democratic welfare regime type--labor market position matters in one's chances to become a homeowner.

Neoliberal-driven austerity has changed the role of the state, public service provision and citizenship. Thriving in today's society is a challenge for communities around the world as governments increasingly promote privatisation, centralised control, individual responsibility and battle with the impacts of Covid19. Co-authored by practitioners and academics and based on case studies of collaborations between civil society and the civic university, this book uses the North East of England as a lens to explore how different communities have responded to changing circumstances. The case studies present examples of actions aiming to create hope and inspiration for communities in challenging times.

Recent government legislation requires local authorities to provide secure accommodation for unintentionally homeless 16- and 17-year-olds. Many local authority housing departments are therefore facing the challenge of how to adequately support this group of young people for the first time. been developed for 16- and 17-year-olds living in Newcastle. It provides vital indicators to other authorities and nominated RSLs of the approaches that they can take to increase successful tenancies and independent living among this age group. policy changes; reports on the first research into the factors affecting the success of young people's tenancies; examines the varied experiences of young people housed by local authorities; provides a framework for objectively evaluating the success of such tenancies; highlights good practice for supporting young people in independent housing. housing departments and nominated RSLs, as well as for students on professional housing courses and academics interested in housing policies, responses to homelessness and issues for young people.

Across Europe and beyond, changing family living arrangements have stimulated popular and academic debate about the impact of socio-demographic trends on family well-being and the challenges they present for governments. This path-breaking book explores the complex relationship between family change and public policy responses in the enlarged European Union. After comparing the major socio-economic changes of the late 20th century in Europe and their impact on family and working life, the book analyses both the reactions of policy makers and users as they respond to change and the perceptions families have of public policy and its relative importance in their lives. The book combines broad-brush scrutiny of demographic trends, policy contexts and debates in contemporary European societies with a fine-grain analysis of the attitudes, perceptions and experiences of families. Five key questions are addressed: How are families changing in European societies? What are the challenges raised for society by changing family structures? How are policy makers and users responding to family change? Does family policy matter? What can policy actors learn from experience in other countries? Fami

Understanding the historical development of pensions is critical to the future of retirement systems around the world. "A History of Public Sector Pensions in the United States" offers a comprehensive assessment of the political and financial dimensions of public sector pensions from the colonial period until the emergence of modern retirement plans in the twentieth century. The authors emphasize how retirement plans can help achieve human resource objectives, how public sector pension policy has sometimes been influenced by other government objectives, and how early pension plans were funded.After discussing the economics of retirement plans, A History of "Public Sector Pensions in the United States" reviews the history of European retirement plans, beginning with their use in the Roman Empire, and then moves on to early American pension systems. The authors explore the development and management of U.S. army and navy pension plans during the nineteenth century, drawing on original records of participants, retirees, and plan finances. They document the struggle to establish a federal civil service retirement system and trace the growth of state and local retirement plans. This history is inextricably linked to broader developments in U.S. financial markets, offering rich insights into political debates, including current debates surrounding plan design and plan funding."A History of Public Sector Pensions in the United States" will be of significant interest to financial market and pension experts, labor and corporate pension sponsors, policymakers, public sector plan participants, and others who want to know how and why pensions emerged.