Why Did the Role of Government Change Due to the Problems in the Industry and People's Lives?

Throughout the duration of World War I the government were faced with numerous problems. The state of the industry was in decline, women were now needed for work and family support, fewer necessities were being made due to the absence of workers, rations were to be introduced, munitions were running low, the price of food had increased and that was just the beginning. The industry and the structure of civilian's everyday lives had changed drastically in a short span of time which meant that the role of the government was forced into change. The introduction of harsh restraints and new rules that had of yet been alien to Britain left the government in a position of hate from the public, that was worrying in the face of war as the moral of Britain was of high priority to the leaders of a country in decline.

One problem that had emerged from the wreck of a new war was the issue of financing such a vast and destructive war itself. With a heavy price tag of an estimated nine billion, Britain was forced into borrowing money from the United States and other minor countries within its empire. The united stated however also provided munitions, raw materials and 4 million people that served in the armed forces. This however, strange as it may seem, was not a welcome intrusion to many British nationalists, despite the fact that Winston Churchill himself predicted that the European war would end "in the ruin of the vanquished and the scarcely less fatal commercial dislocation and exhaustion of the conquerors." He was not as optimistic as the British civilians. Lloyd George's choice to accept such vast loans from one of the world's largest powers left Britain in a debt of 7.4 billion pounds that was to be paid with interest, and hugely reliant on other countries. The government had become desperate. In an attempt to accumulate even a fraction of that debt the government introduced a mandatory income tax that had inflated to become six times bigger than the tax had previously been. It went from being just one shilling (less than 6p in the pound) in 1914 to six shillings (30p in the pound.) The newly strict regime introduced by the government regarding the payment of the income tax forced more people to actually pay the tax at all. Britain began to gradually pay of its debt; however, there were yet more measure to be introduced to pay off the rest of the colossal debt.

During the extent of the war the state of the industry was under great concern. With any available men being positioned into the army, all jobs that would previously have been occupied by men were left empty and the traditional views towards a women's role prohibited the government form seeking their help. By now Lloyd George had assumed total power over the industries with his new role as prime minister; he used this power to create dilution. With all necessities, including food supplies and munitions running dangerously low, Lloyd George finally decided that women were to begin employment in the munitions industry as well as introducing the women's land army in 1915. This however was not welcomed by everyone. Some were of the opinion that a women's role was that of a traditional women. At home, looking after the family life. Some women themselves also agreed with this logic. Though some vehemently disagreed with this notion. They