Unemployment and the state in Britain offers an important and original contribution to understandings of the 1930s. Through a comparative case study of south Wales and the north-east of England, the book explores the impact of the highly controversial means test, the relationship between the unemployed and the government and the nature of some of the largest protests of the interwar period.

This study will appeal to students and scholars of the depression, social movements, studies of the unemployed, social policy and interwar British society.

Reviews

...the author has made full use of primary sources in both regions, and she reaches significant conclusions.

Introduction
Part I
1. Unemployment and the depression in interwar Britain
Part II: 1931-34
2. Defiance and disobedience: local government, the unemployed and Whitehall
3. Accusations, image and experience: the effects of the means test, 1931-34
4. Taking a stand: the response of the unemployed 1931-34
Part III: 1935-41
5. The government attempts to take a stand: the establishment of the UAB and mass action
6. Towards the welfare state: class, community and the collective action, 1936-41
Conclusion
Appendices
Bibliography
Index