1. What was the Legacy of Thatcherism for the Criminal Justice System in England 7& Wales?
Stephen Farrall (CCR, Sheffield Univ).
January 2017, Thatcher and Thatcherism Conference, Durham.

2. Which policies are we most interested in?
Economic policies
Housing policies
Social security (esp. after 1986)
Education policies (esp. after 1988)

3. Figure 1: Unemployment Rate (%), 1970-2006
Thatcher’s period in office
Major’s period in office

4. Economic Changes
This in turn led to increases in levels of inequality (Figure 2), augmented by changes in taxation policies which favoured the better off.

5. Figure 2: Income Inequality (Gini coefficient), 1970-2006
Thatcher’s period in office
Major’s period in office

6. The Economy and Crime in Post-War Britain
Using time series analyses for Jennings et al (2012) find statistically significant relationships for:
1: the unemployment rate on the rate of property crime (consistent with other studies),
2: we also find that the crime-economy link strengthened during this period.
3: (economic inequality just outside bounds of significance).

7. Housing Policy
1980 Housing Act (+ others): created RTB – saw a huge rise in owner-occupation.
Created residualisation of council housing; transient/marginalised residents with low levels of employment.
Contributed to concentration of social and economic need ...
… and then to the concentration of crime.

8. Social Security 1980-1985: Some tinkering with the DHSS.
1986 Social Security Act based on Fowler Review.
Following this payments reduced for many individual benefits claimants (whilst total spend increased due to unemployment).
Jennings et al (2012) suggest that increases in welfare spending are associated with declines in the property crime rate.

9. Education
‘Choice’ agenda encouraged schools to exclude poorly performing children to improve league table position.
Exclusions rose, reaching a peak of 12,668 in
Increased Anti-Social Behaviour (HO RDS Occ. Paper 71).
The BCS shows sudden jump of people reporting “teens hanging around” to be a problem from an average of 8% before 2001 to 30% after 2002.
School exclusions helped to create Labour’s discourse of ASB and need for C&DA 1998.

10. What happened to crime (etc)?
Rise in crime (Fig 3). This was generally rising before 1979, but the rate of increase picked up after early 1980s and again in early 1990s.
Fear of crime rises (tracks recorded crime rates, Fig 4).
Levels of punitive sentiment rise (tracks recorded crime rates, Fig 5).

11. Figure 3: Property Crime Per Capita (Home Office Recorded Statistics and BCS)
Thatcher’s period in office
Major’s period in office

12. Figure 4: Percentage worried about crime (BCS 1982-2005)
Thatcher’s period in office
Major’s period in office

13. Major’s period in office
Fig 5: Punitive opinion* (excluding the death penalty) and recorded crime in England and Wales,
Thatcher’s period in
office
Major’s period in office
*Based on eight CSE&W and BSAS items relating to sentencing, CJS doing a good job, obeying the law (but excluding those relating to the death penalty).

14. Developments post-1993 Howard (Home Sec 1993-97) talks and acts tough.
Prison population rises immediately; rise in average sentence lengths.
Due also to stricter enforcement and mandatory minimum sentences (aimed at burglars and drug traffickers).
Prison population grew by 2.5% p.a. from 1945 to 1995, but by 3.8% p.a (MoJ, 2009: 4).

15. More ways of being punitive
Thatcher’s CJS Legacy
Empty!
More ways of being punitive

16. Labour Party’s Response
Move to the political right.
‘Tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime’.
Focus on ‘young offenders’ (related to School Exclusions/ and >ASB?).
Did not oppose Crime (Sentences) Act 1997 despite it being quite draconian (‘3 strikes’, minimum mandatory sentences).

17. Conclusion
Thatcherism was a mix of both neo-liberal and neo-conservative instincts.
Changes which were driven by neo-liberal instincts (housing, employment, social security and education) led to rises in crime.
Rises in crime increased punitiveness amongst public/politicians (and with a neo-conservative mind-set this meant ‘tougher’ prison sentences).

18. Conclusion
Crime rise in 1980s-1990s; changes in public sentiments about crime in 1990s and early 2000s; and a ‘toughened’ CJS.
The creation of a new ‘consensus’ on crime.
Needed shift in Labour’s stance on crime for this to ossify.