Unemployment was the dominant issue of British society during the interwar years.[1] Unemployment levels rarely dipped below 1,000,000 and reached a peak of more than 3,000,000 in 1933, a figure which represented more than 20% of the working population. The unemployment rate was even higher in areas including South Wales and Liverpool.[1] The Government extended unemployment insurance schemes in 1920 to alleviate the effects of unemployment.[2]