Editing H. H. Asquith (section)

====Social, religious and labour matters====
Despite the distraction of the problem of the House of Lords, Asquith and his government moved ahead with a number of pieces of reforming legislation. According to Matthew, "no peacetime premier has been a more effective enabler. Labour exchanges, the introduction of unemployment and health insurance&nbsp;... reflected the reforms the government was able to achieve despite the problem of the Lords. Asquith was not himself a 'new Liberal', but he saw the need for a change in assumptions about the individual's relationship to the state, and he was fully aware of the political risk to the Liberals of a Labour Party on its left flank."<ref name="dnb"/> Keen to keep the support of the Labour Party, the Asquith government passed bills urged by that party, including the [[Trade Union Act 1913]] (reversing the [[Osborne judgment]]) and in 1911 granting MPs a salary, making it more feasible for working-class people to serve in the House of Commons.{{sfn|Koss|p=230}}

In 1911, there were fears of a potential miner's strike immediately following a railwaymen's strike in August. In February 1912, the executives of the [[Miners' Federation of Great Britain|Miners' Federation]] voted in favour of a strike. Asquith, alongside Lloyd George, Buxton, and Grey, met the executives at the [[Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office|Foreign Office]], where he accepted the principle of a minimum wage but rejected the 5 and 2 demand.{{Sfn|Koss||pp=132–33}} As threatened, the strike began. Following the failure of attempts by the cabinet to compromise, the government resorted to [[emergency]] legislation. In March, the Miner's Minimum Wage Bill was passed through the Commons and the Lords, adhering to its policy of not opposing trade unions, approved the measure. Asquith emotionally presented the Bill for its third reading, saying “we have exhausted all our powers of persuasion and argument and negotiation.”  The bill was passed and the [[Coal Mines (Minimum Wage) Act 1912|new act]] established district boards to determine minimum wages with trade union representation. In April, a union vote failed to secure a two-thirds majority for continuation, and miners returned to work.{{Sfn|Koss||p=133}}

Asquith had as chancellor placed money aside for the provision of non-contributory [[old-age pension]]s; the bill authorising them passed in 1908, during his premiership, despite some objection in the Lords.{{sfn|Jenkins|pp=166–167, 188}} Jenkins noted that the scheme (which provided five shillings a week to single pensioners aged seventy and over, and slightly less than twice that to married couples) "to modern ears sounds cautious and meagre. But it was violently criticised at the time for showing a reckless generosity."{{sfn|Jenkins|p=167}}  In 1913,  a committee was established to develop a land reform scheme. The committee produced a comprehensive report on rural land issues and its proposals were largely accepted by government ministers and formed the foundation of Lloyd George's “Land Campaign”.{{Sfn|Spender & Asquith|p=357}} In August 1913, following the [[Prorogation in the United Kingdom|prorogation of Parliament]], the final proposals were presented to Asquith at a ministerial gathering at Haldane's house. Asquith ultimately approved them, including the introduction of a minimum wage for agricultural labourers, despite previously being reluctant on the issue.{{Sfn|Spender & Asquith|p=358}}

The [[Children Act 1908]] consolidated multiple previous laws to improve [[Child Welfare|child welfare]]. It established juvenile courts, remand homes, and prohibited placing children under 16 in adult prisons. The Act also aimed to enhance parental responsibility and state involvement in child welfare.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Laybourn |first=Keith |title=The Evolution of British Social Policy and the Welfare State, C. 1800–1993 |date=1 January 1995 |publisher=Edinburgh University Press |isbn=978-1853310768 |pages=169–170}}</ref>  Both the old-age pensions and the Children Act reduced the number of people dependent on the Poor Law. Lloyd George then further aimed to alleviate the impact of ill health with the [[National Insurance Act 1911]]. The health scheme worked within the constraints of existing systems, managed by friendly societies and trade unions, and operated by insurance companies.  Under the health insurance scheme, workers aged 16 to 65, earning under $150 per year, paid 4d. per week, with employers contributing 3d. and the state 2d. This funded benefits like sickness pay, with men receiving 10s. (50p) per week and women 7s. 6d. for the first 13 weeks of illness, and 5s. thereafter. The 1911 National Insurance Act later expanded this with unemployment insurance.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Laybourn |first=Keith |title=The Evolution of British Social Policy and the Welfare State, C. 1800–1993 |date=1 January 1995 |publisher=Edinburgh University Press |pages=170–175}}</ref>

Asquith's new government became embroiled in a controversy over the [[Eucharistic Congress]] of 1908, held in London. Following the [[Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829]], the [[Catholic Church]] had seen a resurgence in Britain, and a large procession displaying the [[Blessed Sacrament]] was planned to allow the laity to participate. Although such an event was forbidden by the 1829 act, planners counted on the British reputation for religious tolerance,<ref name="Devlin">{{cite journal|last=Devlin|first=Carol A.|date=September 1994|title=The Eucharistic Procession of 1908: The Dilemma of the Liberal Government|journal=[[Church History (journal)|Church History]]|volume=6|issue=3|pages=408–409|doi=10.2307/3167537|quote=However, the organizers expected few problems because of the English reputation for religious tolerance and hospitality.|jstor=3167537|s2cid=161572080}}</ref> and [[Francis Cardinal Bourne]], the [[Archbishop of Westminster]], had obtained permission from the Metropolitan Police. When the plans became widely known, King Edward objected, as did many other Protestants. Asquith received inconsistent advice from his Home Secretary, [[Herbert Gladstone]], and successfully pressed the organisers to cancel the religious aspects of the procession, though it cost him the resignation of his only Catholic cabinet minister, [[Lord Ripon]].{{sfn|Jenkins|pp=190–193}}

Disestablishment of the Welsh Church was a Liberal priority, but despite support by most Welsh MPs, there was opposition in the Lords. Asquith was an authority on Welsh disestablishment from his time under Gladstone, but had little to do with the passage of [[Welsh Church Act 1914|the bill]]. It was twice rejected by the Lords, in 1912 and 1913, but having been forced through under the Parliament Act received royal assent in September 1914, with the provisions [[Suspensory Act 1914|suspended]] until war's end.<ref name="dnb"/>{{sfn|Spender & Asquith|p=356}}