In June 1941 William Beveridge left the office of Arthur Greenwood, a British cabinet minister, with tears in his eyes. A well-known academic and civil servant, Beveridge had sought a big job in the war effort. The 62-year-old was brilliant, but also obsessive, vainglorious and prim. To sideline him, Greenwood proposed what seemed a thankless task: reviewing Britain’s social-insurance schemes.
What emerged was a blueprint for the modern welfare state. In December 1942, having stretched his brief to the point of bursting, Beveridge published his account of the “Five Giants”: disease, idleness, ignorance, squal- or and want. He proposed new benefits for the retired, disabled and unemployed, a universal allowance for children and a nationwide health service.
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