Asia Research Centre public seminar
Date: Monday 6 February 2012
Time: 11am-12.30pm
Venue: NAB.1.18, New Academic Building
Speaker: Dr Naijun Hu
Chair: Professor Athar Hussain
What is social policy? According to Professor Tim Newburn, Head of the Department of Social Policy at LSE, "social policy is an interdisciplinary and applied subject concerned with the analysis of societies' response to social needs. The basic human needs include: food and shelter, a sustainable and safe environment, the promotion of health, the treatment of the sick, the care and support of those unable to live a fully independent life and the education and training of individuals to a certain level that enable them to fully participate in society". Accordingly, ideal social policy should touch every aspect of peoples' needs and well-being, with governments satisfying peoples' needs and expectations. In China's traditional socialism, these needs should be satisfied by the direct delivery of the government. Hence, the Working Unit was of much importance prior to the systemic reforms of the 1990's, whether government, PSOs or enterprises. Consequently, China still has large public sector organisations and huge numbers of public sector employees. After the 1990's, pension, healthcare, housing, unemployment and maternity benefits are being delivered through the social insurance system. The basic characteristics of social insurance are the pooling of risk, the contribution requirement and limits to the level of benefit. However, social insurance alone will not satisfy these needs if China seeks to attain the levels outlined by Professor Newburn. Through comparing social policy as it is understood at the LSE and social policy practices in the UK, the disadvantages of China's social insurance system in meeting peoples' needs are highlighted and analysed, and suggestions made as to how to build and enhance social policy theory and practice in China.
Dr Naijun Hu is currently a Visiting Fellow at the LSE Asia Research Centre. He received his PhD in Management at Tsinghua University in 2010. In 2008 and 2009 he spent six months at the Asia Research Centre as a visiting student. Dr Hu was previously a post-doctoral visiting research fellow at King's College London's China Institute.
This event is free and open to all with no ticket required. Entry is on a first come, first served basis. For any queries email arc@lse.ac.uk
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