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Department of Health and Social Security

"DHSS" redirects here. For the Serbian political party, see Christian Democratic Party of Serbia.

The Department of Health and Social Security (commonly known as the DHSS) was a ministry of the British government in existence for twenty years from 1968 until 1988, and was headed by the Secretary of State for Social Services.

Department of Health and Social Security
Department overview
Formed1968
Preceding agencies
Dissolved1988
Superseding agencies
JurisdictionUnited Kingdom
HeadquartersLondon

History

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In 1953, the Ministry of Pensions and the Ministry of National Insurance were merged to create the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance. In 1966, the Supplementary Benefits Commission (part of the National Assistance Board) was merged with the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance to form the new Ministry of Social Security, as part of the Ministry of Social Security Act 1966.[1]

In 1968, the Ministry of Social Security and the Ministry of Health were dissolved and their functions merged into a new Department of Health and Social Security by an Order in Council which came into operation on 1 November 1968.[2]

Although the department was titled 'Department of Health and Social Security', the title of the cabinet minister with responsibility for the department was 'secretary of state for social services'.[3][4]

In 1988 the department was split again into a separate Department of Health and the Department of Social Security.[5]

In 2001 the Department for Work and Pensions was formed from the Department of Social Security, absorbing the employment functions which had previously been the responsibility of the Department for Education and Employment since the dissolution of the Department of Employment in 1995.

Ministers

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Impact

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Even two and a half decades after its abolition, the initials "DHSS" continue to be used by the general public to describe the Department for Work and Pensions or some of the benefits it provides (such as Income Support).

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  • Half Man Half Biscuit the notable cynico-rock group from The Wirral, UK, named their first album "Back in the DHSS" as a pun on the earlier single by the Beatles ("Back in the USSR") and a nod to the growing unemployment under the Thatcher administration of the 1980s.
  • UB40 (a reggae group from Birmingham, whose first album was released in 1980[6]) was named after the form issued by the DHSS to those claiming unemployment benefit, the full name of which was Unemployment Benefit form 40.[7]
  • British group Wham! mention the "DHSS" in their song "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)".[8]
  • Punk poet Attila the Stockbroker's poem "Russians in the DHSS" satirized the Cold War threat of the Soviet Union in Thatcher-era Britain.
  • In The Young Ones episode "Bomb" Rick attempts to write a threatening telegram to the British Government through a DHSS office which he mistakes for the post office.
  • In Yes Minister it is mentioned by one of the characters, when sitting in a round-table meeting in relation to equal opportunities for women.[9]

References

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  1. ^ "The Cabinet Papers | Benefit reform". nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
  2. ^ "The Secretary of State for Social Services Order 1968", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 25 October 1968, SI 1968/1699, retrieved 1 August 2024
  3. ^ Richard Crossman, Secretary of State for Social Services (24 October 1968). "SECRETARY OF STATE for SOCIAL SERVICES". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. col. 1609. The House will notice that my title is wider than that of the proposed new Department. This is in recognition of the fact, as the Prime Minister mentioned in the House last week, that I have been asked to continue my coordination of the whole range of social services, in addition to my responsibility for the new Department.
  4. ^ a b "Records created or inherited by the Department of Health and Social Security and related bodies". The National Archives. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  5. ^ "The Transfer of Functions (Health and Social Security) Order 1988", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 26 October 1988, SI 1988/1843, retrieved 1 August 2024
  6. ^ "Biography". UB40 official website. United Kingdom: Box UK. Archived from the original on 15 June 2009. Retrieved 2 June 2009. UB40's first album was released in September 1980.
  7. ^ "Ub40 Biography". BiggestStars.com. Archived from the original on 4 December 2008. Retrieved 2 June 2009. The name "UB40" was selected in reference to a paper form issued by the UK government's Department of Health and Social Security at the time of the band's formation for claiming unemployment benefit. The designation UB40 stood for Unemployment Benefit, Form 40.
  8. ^ "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)". Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 19 August 2018 – via YouTube.
  9. ^ Yes Minister (Television production). United Kingdom: BBC. 7 December 2020 – via YouTube.


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