Aneurin Bevan - 'Father of the NHS'

 

   Hi! This is the first post of a new series that I have wanted to start for a long time, I have called it 'Welsh Figure Wednesdays'. These posts will feature important Welsh figures who have contributed to Welsh society in many ways.

   In this blog post, we will be discussing Aneurin Bevan and his role in Welsh politics and the National Health Service. 

                                                        (This image was found here)

Aneurin (pronounced as an-eye-rin) 'Nye' Bevan was born in Tredegar, in 1897, into a large mining family. Aneurin left school at the age of thirteen to work in the mine, later he became active in trade unionism and a well-known orator and social commentator. 

    During the 1920s Bevan worked tirelessly. He worked as a miner, albeit intermittently, as well as an advisor to residents. 1926 saw Bevan appointed as a union official just as the General Strike was beginning. The aim of the General Strike was to prevent wage reduction and worsening conditions for coal miners (as we know mining conditions weren't the most pleasant). The Strike was called by the Trades Union Congress (TUC). The Strike provided an opportunity for Bevan as he was seen as a leading figure, and 'orchestrated the distribution of strike pay in Tredegar'. (this information is linked in the bibliography, but can be found here) 

    Furthermore, Bevan progressed in his 'public' career. In 1928, he became a councillor on Monmouth County Council and an MP for Ebbw Vale in 1929. He married in 1934 to Jennie Lee, a fellow  Labour MP. They worked together to support Socialists in the Spanish Civil War against Franco, and a Committee for the 'Relief of the Victims of German Fascism' was set up. However, in 1936 The Tribune was founded by Bevan and a group of 'left-wingers'. His activism and agitation led to a brief expulsion from Labour. 

    Labour returned to government in 1945, and under Bevan, now the secretary of state for health saw the creation of the National Health Service in 1948. John Davies stated that Bevan was 'inspired' by the Tredegar Medical Aid Society, 'which provided free medical treatment for its entire membership'. Thus, Aneurin's aim was to extend this to all members of the United Kingdom. Conditions of hospitals in Wales were 'dire', 'of the 21 institutions housing the permanently infirm, all were one-time workhouses'. (See bibliography for reference) 

    Aneurin 'wasn't prepared to compromise his free-at-the-point-of-use ideals for the NHS', unlike Hugh Gaitskell the chancellor of the exchequer, who brought in prescriptions and other charges. Bevan ultimately resigned as minister for health, and ran for the leadership of the Labour Party in 1955, but was defeated by Gaitskell. 1959 saw Aneurin elected as deputy leader, but unfortunately, he died in 1960 from cancer. 


This image was found here

Legacy

'Aneurin Bevan University Health Board is the local health board of NHS Wales for Gwent, in the south-east of Wales. Headquartered in Caerleon, the local health board was launched in October 2009 through the merger of Gwent Healthcare NHS Trust and Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly, Newport, Torfaen, and Monmouthshire'. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aneurin_Bevan_University_Health_Board)



Bibliography:

1. Aneurin Bevan (1897 - 1960)

  https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/figures/aneurin_bevan.shtml

2. Aneurin Bevan Health Board, 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aneurin_Bevan_University_Health_Board 

3. Aneurin Bevan image, https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01pd7vm

4. John Davies, A History of Wales. London, 2007. (Page 263). 

5. The General Strike, https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/cabinetpapers/alevelstudies/the-general-strike.htm

Location: Newport, UK

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