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Documents - The Extent and Limits of Social Policy
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1.   Daring More Democracy (October 28, 1969)
After a change of government that many saw as historic, the newly elected chancellor promised both democratic....
2.   No Ordinary Change in Government – 1969 (retrospective account, 2001)
In this retrospective account, Rainer Barzel, a former parliamentary leader and Christian Democratic candidate for chancellor, describes how the change....
3.   A New Platform for the Free Democrats (FDP) (October 25-27, 1971)
The Free Democrats’ political renewal in the 1960s reached a preliminary highpoint with the 37 Freiburg Theses, which called for a liberal social policy and “social capitalism” as party objectives,....
4.   Social Policy and Economic Planning (April 28, 1972)
Honecker’s new political emphasis on the “unity of economic and social policy” took the Five-Year Plan as an example and promised increased benefits for retired workers, mothers, and young married....
5.   The Day-to-Day Problems of Running the Country (September 19, 1972)
Incumbent chancellor Willy Brandt offers a self-critical examination of his first three years in office. Conceding that the great expectations placed upon him....
6.   Social Welfare State Based on the Rule of Law (April 4, 1973)
In 1972, the federal government submitted a bill on social law but ultimately deferred it. A year later, Walter Arendt, Federal Minister of Labor and Social Affairs,....
7.   Expansion of the Welfare State (September 24, 1973)
The welfare state was further expanded under the social-liberal coalition, but politicians from all political camps – and economics experts, in particular – began to voice criticism, questioning....
8.   Taking Stock of the Federal Government’s Social Policy (May 17, 1974)
In his inaugural address to the Bundestag, newly elected chancellor Helmut Schmidt takes stock of the achievements of the SPD-FDP coalition, giving particular....
9.   New Poverty in the Federal Republic (1976)
The Federal Republic’s “new poverty” was brought to the public’s attention not least by Heiner Geißler, the CDU’s social policy expert. In this document, Geißler....
10.   A Shortage of Everyday Commodities (May 15, 1979)
These reports from local functionaries in the SED start off by dutifully emphasizing the populace’s broad approval of the party’s social policy; yet they also convey the harsh criticisms voiced by....
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