Their Agree With This View Of The Essay Example

reforms, resulting in no less than 180 capital offenses being abolished and the removal of rarely enforced laws. Peel's aim was to establish a smaller, more centralized criminal code that adopted a liberal approach to punishment. By ruling out capital punishment for many crimes, rehabilitation rather than execution became the focus, giving individuals the possibility of freedom once they had been rehabilitated in jail. Some argue that Peel's reforms simply streamlined Britain's constitution, creating a more accessible criminal code to be enforced.

The government tackled the Combination Acts, which forbade collective bargaining and trade unions by British workers, in a socially progressive manner. The repeal of these acts in 1824 paved the way for the presence of trade unions, which considerably enhanced the rights and equality of workers in Britain. Significantly, the campaigning of Francis Place was instrumental in the Acts' passage, indicating that the Tory government was not solely motivated by its liberal policy. Despite this liberal outlook, the subsequent rise in strikes led to the passage of the Combination Act of 1825, which recognized the right of labor unions to operate but restricted their impact and activity. As a result, it is apparent that the Tory government's commitment to its liberal policy was fickle, with the implementation of more typically Tory measures only a year after displaying a liberal disposition.

The Tory party's approach to social issues was not particularly significant and was less liberal in comparison to their economic policies. They did not prioritize liberal policies, instead favoring a more conservative form of governance. Nevertheless, there were instances where the government showed a liberal stance regarding religion. The Corporation Act of 1661

restricted public office positions to members of the established church, excluding Catholics and nonconformists. Although the act affected mainly Catholics in practice, it impeded nonconformists' ability to participate in public office. Starting in 1827, there were amendments and repeals to this act, demonstrating a mostly liberal stance by allowing different religious groups to be represented in Parliament. However, such changes encountered significant opposition and were not widely accepted, making it difficult for nonconformists to operate within public office.

The Catholic emancipation was a major turning point for Tory rule, with the inclusion of two Catholics in Liverpool’s cabinet after a reshuffle in 1822. The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 marked the culmination of this movement by repealing all the remaining Penal Laws and granting Catholics the right to sit in Parliament. Although this was a significant step towards greater Catholic representation, they were still unable to become ministers or attend university. Therefore, there was more work to be done for complete liberalization. Nevertheless, this governmental action was revolutionary in its introduction of liberal policy and could be considered more liberal in practice than social or economic policy.

Contrary to the belief that the Tory government only implemented liberal measures in trade and finance, it can be argued that they also introduced liberal policies in social matters, although these were not as successful as their economic policies. Moreover, their religious policies were groundbreaking for Tory governance as they deviated from the conservative approach of maintaining the status quo in the House of Commons and allowed Catholics to become members of Parliament. This was a pivotal and noteworthy move towards establishing a liberal Tory government.