Case Study 1
Sample questions and answers on Programme for Economic Expansion, 1958-1963
SECTION 1 – DOCUMENT-BASED QUESTION IRELAND: TOPIC 6
Government, Economy and Society in the Republic of Ireland, 1949 – 1989
Case study to which the documents relate: The First Programme for Economic Expansion
Study the documents opposite and answer the questions below.
1. (a) According to Document A, how did Ireland differ from other countries in the western world? (5) (b) In Document A, what was the figure for unemployment in 1957? (5)
(c) According to Document B, why did the Union have no large-scale unemployment? (5)
(d) According to Document B, why are workers emigrating from the distributive trade? (5)
2. (a) Do doth documents agree that emigration is a serious problem? Refer to both documents in your
answer. (10)
2. (b) Which of the two documents provides the best information on the conditions in the country? Refer to both documents in your answer. (10) 3.(a) Give one strength and one weakness of biographies
such as Document A as historical sources. (10) 3.(b) Do you consider Document B, a report, to be an
objective source? (10) 4. What role did T.K. Whitaker play in Ireland’s
economic expansion? (40)
Document A
The economic indicators were certainly gloomy. Between 1955 and 1957 Ireland was the only country in the western world where the total value of goods consumed had actually fallen. Between 1955 and 1958 two out of every five workers in the building industry lost their jobs. In 1957 unemployment had reached a record 78,000 and 54,000 men and women had emigrated. John Hogan, Sean Lemass: The Enigmatic Patriot. Gill and Macmillan, 1997, p. 176.
Document B
Extract from an Irish Times Report, 29 April, 1957 Unemployment is our first major problem, which must be solved quickly if we are to survive as a nation and keep our people at home. This was impressed upon the 39th annual delegate meeting of the Irish National Union of Vintners’, Grocers’ and Allied Trades’ Assistants in Dublin yesterday by the president, Mr Thomas Cox.
He said his union had no large-scale unemployment because over 200 of its members left the various trades for which it catered and, of the number who left, 112 emigrated.
“We are aware that the workers are emigrating from the distributive trade in droves because of the low standard of living and the long hours of work, with little prospect of improvement in the future. Emigration is not an acceptable solution to the problem of unemployment.” he said.
The Irish Times, 29 April, 1957
SAMPLE ANSWERS
1. (a) It “was the only country in the western world where the total value of goods consumed had actually fallen”. (5) (b) 78,000 (5) (c) “because over 200 of its members left the various trades … and, of the number who left, 112 emigrated.
(5) (d) “because of the low standard of living and the long hours of work, with little prospect of improvement in the future”. (5)
2. (a) Yes, they do agree. Doc A points out that 54,000 men and women had emigrated and because of this, “the total value of goods consumed had actually fallen”.
Doc B, while more focused on the distributive trade, supports this view, saying that of the 200 members who had left, 112 emigrated. Cox also points out that “emigration is not an acceptable solution to the problem of unemployment”.
2(b) Doc A provides the best overall view. It reflects the picture countrywide, pointing out that “the economic indicators were … gloomy”, the value of goods consumed had fallen and “between 1955 and 1958 two out of every five workers in the building industry lost their jobs. In 1957 unemployment had reached a record 78,000 and 54,000 … had emigrated”.
Doc B is like a microcosm of Doc A. It has a much narrower view, focusing only on the distributive trade and showing how the poor economic situation is impacting its workers. The figures of, for example, 200 leaving and 112 emigrating do provide a good insight into that trade, but not an overall view like we get in Doc A.
3 (a) One strength of biographies such as Doc A is that they are generally written by historians who will have researched their subject in detail. The will have access to all sorts of primary and secondary sources and cross-check their facts.
A weakness of biographies is that the writer could be overly sympathetic to their subject and could therefore be selective or biased in the information they give.
3(b) Yes, I do consider Document B to be an objective source. It is a report from a delegate meeting of the Irish National Union of Vintners’, Grocers’ and Allied Trades’ Assistants. It simply reports what was said by Mr Cox at the meeting. The author offers no opinion of his own, just records the facts and shows no bias or subjectivity whatsoever.
Q 4. What role did T.K. Whitaker play in Ireland’s economic expansion?
T.K. Whitaker played a pivotal role in Ireland’s economic development. Whitaker became secretary of the Department of Finance in 1956, a time when Ireland’s economy was on the verge of collapse and unemployment and emigration were spiraling out of control. Whitaker’s Programme for Economic Expansion (PFEE) made radical proposals on Ireland’s future and urged a complete change in policy. The implementation of Whitaker’s PFEE led to unprecedented economic growth. Whitaker was highly critical of the government policy of protectionism and of imposing tariffs on imports; he argued that a new approach was needed. In 1957, he undertook a survey called Economic Development. The results formed the basis for a White Paper which was later became known as the First Programme for Economic Expansion. It recommended that the Government should: encourage foreign investment, limit protectionism, encourage free trade and increase spending on productive investment. It also urged the Government to set targets of 2% economic growth per year. In the survey, Whitaker acknowledged the feelings of anxiety felt by most Irish people about the country’s poor economic condition and the fact that many parents felt the only prospects for their children lay in emigration. However, he warned against giving in to feelings of “frustration and despair” and instead tried to encourage confidence in the economy. This new approach differed completely from the policies that had gone before. Under Whitaker’s guidance and economic planning, protectionist tariffs were gradually removed, and tax breaks and grants were given to foreign companies, mainly by the IDA, to encourage them to set up production in Ireland. He urged a Keynesian approach and capital investment now focused heavily on industry and agriculture. Spending on housing and other social projects was cut in order to stabilise the balance of payments. Through pursuing Whitaker’s policies, Ireland’s economy experienced unprecedented growth of
23% over five years, unemployment fell by almost 30%, the numbers emigrating fell dramatically and the population increased by 66,000. The balance of payments was stabilised as international trade grew and although employment in agriculture fell, employment in related industries grew. Whitaker and the FPEE had transformed Ireland; the success of these new policies was outstanding and meant the country now faced the future with confidence.