The Development of New Liberalism There were many reasons why new liberalism developed in the early 20th century. The two main reasons were political pragmatism and compassion for the poor. New Liberalism developed because Lloyd George, Asquith and Churchill believed that government should help the most vulnerable, who could not stand on their own two feet, such as the young, the elderly, the sick and the unemployed. The other reasons could be Britain's economic position, the Boer War, the laissez-faire approach, international competition, the work of social researchers like Boothand Rowntree, socialist ideas and finally municipal socialism. Old Liberalism was a political party that came to power in 1867. Old Liberalism believed in establishing a national minimum standard of living so that individuals could prosper and help themselves. The old liberals believed that politics was God's will and were deeply religious. Another point was equality for all available opportunities, for example anyone can take national exams, join the army and perform civil service, regardless of ethnic origin, rich or poor or age. The old liberals also believed in self-help, this meant everyone was responsible for themselves, i.e. get a job, live elsewhere, the government believed in minimal intervention. This was Laissez-faire; this meant that there was no intervention in the business economy. The old liberals also believed in low taxation, so that no one could be taxed heavily and everyone could get rich. Old liberals also believed in free trade, which meant that various countries around the world could trade for materials they couldn't produce themselves. New liberals, who evolved from old liberalism, believed in greater intervention to help people in society (i.e. the poor). “Advocates of the New Liberalism, such as David Lloyd George, who entered the cabinet as president of the Board of Trade in 1905, wished to see a much more interventionist approach to improving the lives of the lower classes” (Byrne 1995) The New Liberals were different from the Old Liberals because they believed