イギリスは, 第二次世界大戦初期の段階から戦後再建の検討に着手した。そこでは, 保守党・労働党のイデオロギー上の相違をこえたコンセンサスにもとづく諸改革が構想され, とくに社会政策に関する諸改革の成果は, 戦後の福祉国家の代名詞として評価されてきた。しかし近年は, イギリスの戦後再建をコンセンサスではなく様々な制約によって特徴づけ, 再建の成果は限定的だったとみなす見解が有力となっている。本稿は, そうした研究状況を整理したうえで, イギリス戦後再建研究における問題点と今後の課題を示すものである。
The United Kingdom began considering postwar reconstruction in the early stages of WWII. 
During this stage, various reforms were planned based on a consensus that surpassed the ideological differences between the Conservative Party and the Labour Party. 
Social policies resulting from these reforms were especially praised as being synonymous with the postwar welfare state. 
However, a recent view gaining strength is that the British postwar rebuilding efforts were not characterized by consensus but rather by various constraints, and that the results of reconstruction were very limited. 
This study clarifies the research situation, highlighting problematic points in the British postwar reconstruction studies including current issues and future challenges.

論説