British Government and Politics (JN302) Social Welfare and Home Affairs – British Judicial System

 1. Home Affairs  2. Welfare Services  3. Ministry of Justice Lecture Outline

Home Affairs  The Home Office is responsible for internal affairs:  Policing and crime prevention (anti-social behavour) and crime reduction  Security and counter terrorism  Asylum, immigration and citizenship. t/organisations/home-office

 Home Office funds the police  Responsibility for organising policing on the ground delegated to local authorities  Home Secretary traditional responsibility for overseeing policing in London (Metropolitan Police Commissioner) handed over to Greater London Authority and the Mayor of London.  Directly elected Crime Commissioners - announced 1 December 2010 – power devolved down (Police Authorities abolished).  Home Affairs

 Home Secretary May received hostile reception at the 2012 Police Federation conference after announced budget cuts of 20%.  Federation-humiliates-Theresa-May-by-forcing-her-to-make-speech-in-front- of-criminal-banner.html Federation-humiliates-Theresa-May-by-forcing-her-to-make-speech-in-front- of-criminal-banner.html  More recently May has strongly criticised police at the 2014 Police Federation:  news/2014/may/21/theresa-may-police-federation-power news/2014/may/21/theresa-may-police-federation-power  Outsourcing of police functions to private sector a source of conflict. Home Affairs

 Security and Counter Terrorism.  7/ terrorism attacks in London put security policy at the heart of political agenda.  Prior to this, and following 9/11, Blair government had already passed a succession of ‘anti-terror’ laws.  Tony Blair suffered first House of Commons defeat as PM in November 2005 on the extension of limit from 14 days to 90 days. Accepted compromise 28 days. Coalition government reverted to 14 days.

Home Affairs  Police ‘stop and search’ powers under scrutiny:   May has introduced measures to restrict stop and search powers:  ws/uknews/crime/ /Th eresa-May-introduces-new- restrictions-on-stop-and- search-powers.html ws/uknews/crime/ /Th eresa-May-introduces-new- restrictions-on-stop-and- search-powers.html

 Asylum, immigration and citizenship.  Asylum seeker entered lexicon in the early 1990’s.  Media were quick to focus on the ‘new threat’ and by 2002 ‘red tops’ filled with scare stories.  Became a hot political issue during 2010 election (bigotgate). Home Affairs

 Enlargement of EU and 2014 relaxing of restrictions on Romanian and Bulgarian immigrants has fostered alarm.  Cameron’s pledge to reduce immigration to ‘tens of thousands’ undermined by recent figures:  uk uk

 Welfare provision defined as guarantee of basic standard of living for those in financial need.  Welfare accounts for more than 30% of Britain’s overall public spending budget.  Welfare overseen by Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) with Iain Duncan-Smith as Secretary of State.  tment-for-work-pensions tment-for-work-pensions Welfare Services

 Two broad kinds of benefits:  Contributory benefits – available to people if they have paid sufficient NI contributions; and  Non-contributory benefits – bear no relationship to an individual’s prior NI contributions. Welfare Services

 Jobseeker’s Allowance – paid to adults working fewer than 16 hrs a week and available for and actively seeking full-time work. Amounts linked to savings.  Current maximum weekly rates of JSA are £57.35 for yr olds and £72.40 for over 25s.  Labour introduced minimum wage in It was increased by 19p an hour to £6.50 in October.  Welfare Services

 Income Support – flexible non-contributory benefit for those on low incomes and not in full-time employment who satisfy criteria such as single parents, full-time carers, blind.  Employment and Support Allowance (replaced Incapacity Benefit) available to those who have received sick pay that has ended, self-employed or unemployed, received maternity pay but have not gone back to work because they are sick. Also Disability Living Allowance. Welfare Services

 Universal Credit – plan to collect all benefits in single payment through online system. UC piloted in areas in the north-west of England but computer problems with implementation now threaten its future:  litics/2013/sep/05/universal- credit-iain-duncan-smith litics/2013/sep/05/universal- credit-iain-duncan-smith  elfare-reform-iain-duncan-smith-benefits-universal- credit-logistical-nightmare?guni=Keyword:news- grid%20main- 1%20Main%20trailblock:Editable%20trailblock%20- %20news:Position4 elfare-reform-iain-duncan-smith-benefits-universal- credit-logistical-nightmare?guni=Keyword:news- grid%20main- 1%20Main%20trailblock:Editable%20trailblock%20- %20news:Position4

 Universal benefits versus means-testing debate. Child benefits was universal benefit but Coalition has changed rules:   Other benefits such as winter fuel allowance. Welfare Services

 State pensions. £113 per week for single person. State pension age will rise over next few decades as population ages.  From the budget:  Pension reform – from April people will not have to buy an annuity – instead they will be able to invest their cash as they wish.  Cap on welfare spending (tax credits and housing benefit) (but does not apply to pensions or out of work benefits) at £119.5 billion. Welfare Services

 Coalition government introduced bedroom tax. SNP in Scotland has pledged to repeal it after devolution of welfare decision.  nefit_and_local_housing_allowance/changes_to_hou sing_benefit/bedroom_tax nefit_and_local_housing_allowance/changes_to_hou sing_benefit/bedroom_tax  nt-evicted-record-levels-benefit-cuts-bedroom-tax nt-evicted-record-levels-benefit-cuts-bedroom-tax Welfare Services

 Chris Grayling – Secretary of State for Justice.  y-of-justice y-of-justice  Ministry deals with:  The court system and sentencing policy  Prisons  Probation Ministry of Justice

 Day to day running of British courts is carried out by Her Majesty’s Courts Service  Principal legal advisers are the Attorney General (Jeremy Wright) and the Solicitor General (Robert Buckland)  Subordinate to the Attorney General is the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) who runs the Crown Prosecution Service. Ministry of Justice

 National Offender Management Services (NOMS) – overall running of prisons in England and Wales whether publicly or privately funded/owned.  National Probation Service (NPS) – oversees supervision of individuals serving community- based sentences or individuals who have been released from prison. Ministry of Justice

 Legal aid cuts of £215 million have led to strikes by barristers:  s-protest-parliament-legal-aid-cuts s-protest-parliament-legal-aid-cuts  Protests were called off:  ers-call-off-walkout-deal-legal-aid-cuts ers-call-off-walkout-deal-legal-aid-cuts Ministry of Justice