Hidden convergence: toward a historical comparison of U.S. and U.K. health policy

The social science literature on the comparative history of the welfare state offers conflicting accounts of the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom. At first blush, the comparative history of health care policy in the United States and the United Kingdom seems to affirm the dominant view that the U.S. and U.K. welfare states have diverged substantially during the twentieth century. A comparison of U.S. and U.K. health policy, however, suggests that there are more parallels and points of tangency between the two systems than are readily apparent. The comparative history of health policy over the past century reveals common political and policy challenges and frequent interchanges of policy ideas, and helps uncover the political dynamics behind the development of health policy in the two countries, which can, in turn, help illuminate the contemporary politics of reform in both countries.     

The role of the state in financing recurrent education: Lessons from European experience

This paper first considers what recurrent education is and what economic case might be made out for the State finance of adult education. The traditional arguments on grounds of efficiency and equity are difficult to sustain but a case can be made out that the imperfections in the present State finance and provision of higher education in Britain discourages a free choice amongst individuals between work, education, leisure and retirement. The second part of the article reviews European development in the finance of recurrent education. The third section draws some policy conclusions for Britain and the United states.