Irish Ideology and Social Policy

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Table of Contents

Abstract
Thesis Statement
Social Policy
Mixed Economy of Welfare
Facts on Poverty and Social Exclusion in Ireland
Conclusion
References

Abstract

The Republic of Ireland is unique in terms of its political and economic structures. Politically, it shares some of the characteristics which are possessed by a First World country, while economically; it suffers from some of the problems of a Third World country. Even though there have been and still there are so many policy reactions that focus on the necessity for greater social inclusion, the Republic of Ireland continues to epitomize and reflect the concept of inequality. A few people seem to be advantaged while the majority of the population is being disadvantaged in matters such as education, health and politics. While stakeholders such as the government and the private sector appear to be addressing these social inequalities, serious questions exist about their far-reaching consequences.

Thesis Statement

This paper is going to discuss in detail how the ideologies of inequality and social exclusion have been applied in the Republic of Ireland to disadvantage the majority of the population. It is clear that this issue has received inadequate concern from all the stakeholders and policy makers thus slowing down any progress aimed at leveling the ground for the disadvantaged lot in Irish society.

Social policy is concerned with the strategies that are meant to create, maintain and modify living conditions that are aimed at improving human welfare (Cousins 2003). It is an element of public policy which deals with social issues related to education, healthcare, social security, housing and other social issues. As such, social policy is directed towards meeting human needs and improving their welfare. The understanding of the factors which limit the responsibility of any state in providing welfare services to its people call for the analysis of the merits and demerits of the mixed welfare economy. The market economy has the capacity to generate a lot of wealth. Nevertheless, it does not have the significant role of sharing that wealth. Therefore, if the market is left to operate on its own, it concentrates more wealth and resources in the hands of the dominant actors thereby leading to even more inequalities. The mixed economy of welfare is composed of private, public, charitable and autonomous service providers who offer social services to the public in form of public or private partnership schemes (Suzanne 2006).

Mixed Economy of Welfare

Mixed economy of welfare describes the affiliation between the capitalist means of production and the state venture in the provision of welfare services to the people. The Republic of Ireland has often been having a mixed economy of welfare which provides inadequate welfare services such as education and healthcare services to the majority of its people. What the Irish people have been struggling to achieve throughout history has always been pulled back by the political elite who use unfeasible policies that encourage competition, globalization and an open market economy (Burke 1987). These policies have led to the emergence of social classes in Irish society with the lower class people being disadvantaged.

Dukelow (2009) states that the mixed economy of welfare has brought about an increase in the number of Irish people who are unable to access welfare services. Access to most of these services depends on the financial ability of an individual. On its part, the government has shown very little effort in the development of inclusive policies and feasible public welfare systems. This has led to an increase in privatization of most of the public services by the political elite with its negative impacts on the welfare of the people. Even though the private sector provides better services compared to the public sector, it can not provide services to all the social classes of people because people from lower social classes cannot afford to pay for most of these services. For instance, the mixed economy of welfare has led to an increase in the number of health insurance schemes which can only be accessed by the rich people to cover for their cost of medical care.

In Ireland, the mixed economy of welfare seems to be embracing most of the government’s social policies thereby impacting negatively on the most vulnerable people in the society. For instance, the state is encouraging the youth to contribute to private pension schemes which would sustain them at old age in case the government fails to do that, yet this should be an obligation of the government. In addition, it is sad to note that the Irish welfare condition has reached a critical level where the taxpayer’s money is being misused since the welfare services that are provided by the government are not sufficient.

In addition 1998, there was a mass demonstration in Ireland that was organized by non-governmental organizations to protest against the national budget of 1999 which had a lot of discrimination and social exclusion (Cousins 2003). Prior to this demonstration, the organizing committee which was responsible for this mass action produced information which showed a lot of discrimination on the part of the government. For instance, it was estimated by then that about ten percent of the population had disabilities, and forty three percent of them had increased their overall spending due to their disability conditions. Moreover, forty five percent of the disabled people that were interviewed could not find employment due to their disabilities. It was also established that fifty eight percent of the women who came from households that were receiving child benefit had no other income source. An estimated eighteen percent of women were also said to have experienced violence, with most of them failing to report to the relevant authorities, yet successive governments had failed to deal with this matter. In addition, it was established that Ireland was among the countries that provided little childcare in the European Union. Lastly, the information also showed that only twenty percent of the traveler children within the ages of twelve and fifteen attended school (Cousins 2003).

Conclusion

In conclusion, the social policies which uphold the welfare condition in Ireland are viewed by the Irish people as luxurious since they can only benefit a section of the population, i.e. the rich people, yet they are fundamental to the whole population because of their usefulness in adjusting to current economic changes. The integration of public and private funding in social policy is mostly dictated by corporate interests and political ideologies which in the long run dismantle the basic reasons for constructing significant social policies which are meant to provide quality and affordable services to everyone as is the case in Ireland. It is therefore necessary for the Irish government to re-examine the ideology of social exclusion so as to endorse effective measures for social inclusion.

References

Burke, Helen, 1987, The People and the Poor Law in 19^th Century Ireland, The Irish Women’s Education Bureau, Dublin.

Cousins, Mel, 2003, The Birth of Social Welfare in Ireland 1922-1952, Four Courts Press Ltd, New York.

Dukelow, Fiona, 2009, Irish Social Policy: A critical Introduction, Gill and McMillan, London.

Suzanne, Quin, et al, 2006, Irish Social Policy in Context, University College Dublin Press, Newman House, Dublin.

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Abstract

Thesis Statement

Social Policy

Mixed Economy of Welfare

Facts on Poverty and Social Exclusion in Ireland

Conclusion

References

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