{"id":1733,"date":"2018-01-03T13:42:54","date_gmt":"2018-01-03T13:42:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/schoolshistory.org.uk\/topics\/?page_id=1733"},"modified":"2026-05-12T15:20:17","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T15:20:17","slug":"old-age-pensions-act-1908","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/schoolshistory.org.uk\/topics\/british-history\/modern-britain\/liberal-reforms\/old-age-pensions-act-1908\/","title":{"rendered":"Old Age Pensions Act 1908"},"content":{"rendered":"

Old Age Pensions Act 1908<\/h2>\n

The Old Age Pension was a cornerstone of Liberal Policy and had been a major part of their election campaign pledges. The Pension would provide income for the elderly. It would revolutionise the way in which the state dealt with the needs of older members of society.<\/p>\n

The Old Age pension was not a new idea, despite what Lloyd George suggests in the quote below. It had been mooted by Thomas Paine in his book, the Rights of Man and a scheme was introduced in Prussia under Bismarck. However, it was a major change in the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n

“You have never had a scheme of this kind tried in a great country like ours, with its thronging millions, with its rooted complexities… This is, therefore, a great experiment… We do not say that it deals with all the problem of unmerited destitution in this country. We do not even contend that it deals with the worst part of that problem. It might be held that many an old man dependent on the charity of the parish was better off than many a young man, broken down in health, or who cannot find a market for his labour.” David Lloyd George, June 1908.<\/p>\n

\"David<\/a><\/p>\n

The Old Age Pension set out by the Liberals was as follow:<\/p>\n