Citizenship and Social Policy in Democratic Spain: The Reformulation of the Francoist Welfare State

The activities of the Francoist regime (1939–75) in the field of social policy resulted in the construction of a welfare system covering slightly over eighty per cent of the population and organized along corporatist lines, with significant dissimilarities among the different professional categories. This article examines the development of the Spanish welfare state during the last two decades of democratic rule – a period in which coverage was significantly expanded, a process of decentralization occurred and several cost control measures began to be introduced. In particular, the article analyses the changes that have taken place in the domains of income maintenance, health care and personal social services. It also considers the impact of those changes on the macro-institutional design of the welfare system, as well as on the conditions of access and equality. Finally, attention is paid to the role played by the family as a provider of social services in Spain.