State Reform and the Local Economy: an Aspect of Industrialization in Late Victorian and Edwardian London (Book).

The article discusses the impact of industrialization on state reform and local economy in London, England. The changes in the industrial and labor structures were linked to a revolution in Victorian taste and buying habits. Modern retailing and an era of mass consumption accompanied the decades of prosperity and declining prices. Labor and industry were subject to the indigenous problems of the city's growth. Moreover, technological changes had an impact on the structure of industry and the make-up of the labor force. In addition to new acquisition of machinery, the mode of production within the clothing trades was altered by the introduction of subdivision and sub-contracting of labor. Women workers complained that state regulation had caused a reduction in their employment in regulated industries.