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The Foundation for Law, Justice and Society (FLJS) is an independent not-for-profit institution that aims to promote an understanding of the role of law in society. We identify and analyse issues of contemporary interest and importance, disseminating the insights of decision-makers and experts to a global audience through our extensive online resource of free-to-download Policy Briefings, Opinion Pieces, and multimedia podcasts.
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Crisis and the Welfare State: The Need for a New Distributinal Agenda
Contemporary welfare states remain in need of powerful policies aimed at protecting against new social risks, inclusion through work, and more equality in education and the labour market. Clearly, in less stratified societies, such as in Scandinavia, there is less scope for Matthew effects and these social policies are likely to be more effective.
However, this analysis suggests that welfare states should take more account of the highly stratified nature of ‘new social risks’, of the continuing need to protect people against the equally strongly stratified old social risks, and of the unsolved question of how to design and implement institutions that are more effective in creating equal opportunities. Adequate social security and efficient social redistribution are part and parcel of the social investment state.
