- School of Law
Ulster University
Northland Road
Derry-Londonderry
BT487JL
Mark Simpson
University of Ulster, School of Law, Faculty Member
- Social Security Law, Equality of opportunity, Devolution, politics and social poilicy, Devolution in the United kingdom, Gender Equality, Social Citizenship, and 19 moreAccess to the Countryside, Outdoor Recreation, Ideologies of the Countryside, Right to Roam, Socio Economic Rights, Socio-legal studies, Welfare State, Welfare Reform, Environmental Law, Agriculture, Rural Development, Ecotourism, Irish History, Citizenship identities, Social Security, Pensions and retirement income, Northern Irish Politics, Environmental Sustainability, and Climate Changeedit
- Lecturer in Law, Ulster University (Magee campus). Recent projects: Destitution and paths to justice; Social security... moreLecturer in Law, Ulster University (Magee campus).
Recent projects: Destitution and paths to justice; Social security systems based on dignity and respect; The social citizenship of lone parents, 2010-2015: evolution and devolution
Primary research interest: Social citizenship, with a focus on social security law, poverty, rights protection and multi-level governance in the UK.
Secondary research interest: Environmental law with a focus on accommodation of agriculture, nature conservation and recreation within the multi-functional rural environment.edit - Gráinne McKeeveredit
The European Social Charter, a relatively neglected human rights instrument in the United Kingdom, academically, judicially and politically, represents a statement of minimum standards in social rights the state has committed to uphold.... more
The European Social Charter, a relatively neglected human rights instrument in the United Kingdom, academically, judicially and politically, represents a statement of minimum standards in social rights the state has committed to uphold. This article assesses the compliance of the UK’s social security system with the Charter following a period of reform that has put in place a less generous, more punitive model of working-age provision. It is argued that social benefit levels and conditions for their receipt are now, at best, of questionable conformity with some of the core requirements of Article 13 (the right to social assistance) and Article 16 (the right to family protection) of the Charter, while the previously identified non-conformity with Article 12 (the right to social security) continues. Consideration is given to the potential potency of the Charter as a means of challenging austerity-driven reforms, alone or in combination with other human rights agreements.
Research Interests:
The protection of human dignity and poverty reduction are core functions of social security. Changes to working age benefits since 2010 have reduced claimants’ incomes, putting more people at risk of poverty and arguably reducing the... more
The protection of human dignity and poverty reduction are core functions of social security. Changes to working age benefits since 2010 have reduced claimants’ incomes, putting more people at risk of poverty and arguably reducing the ability of the system to support a dignified standard of living. Human rights law has been used to challenge key policies and pressure has grown for a different approach in Scotland and Northern Ireland, resulting in Northern Ireland’s mitigations programme and the devolution of new powers to Scotland. The Scottish Government has given a commitment to develop a devolved system on the basis of a distinctive set of principles, notably respect for the dignity of claimants, and plans to reinstate statutory targets for the reduction of child poverty. The Northern Ireland Executive has a legal duty to publish a strategy for tackling poverty and social exclusion. There are also proposals for enhanced protection of social and economic rights in both regions. These objectives could be undermined by benefit cuts. Limiting the child element of universal credit to two children per household is projected to increase child poverty and merits particularly close attention. Recent judicial reviews show senior judges are increasingly prepared to hold governments accountable for the impact of social security regulations on children’s rights. It is therefore likely that this change will be challenged in the courts. However, the devolved regions need not wait for legal action. The two-child limit works against Scottish policy on child poverty, while Northern Ireland’s larger average family size and higher rates of socio-economic disadvantage mean it will be among the most affected UK regions: parity in social security provision does not mean parity of living standards. Drawing on research for the Equality and Human Rights Commission, the seminar will examine how social security system can protect dignity. It will then assess the impact of recent reforms in the UK, with a focus on child-related benefits. Finally, it will suggest that dignity and child poverty can help devolved administrations identify priority areas where limited resources can be targeted to improve social security at the regional level.
Research Interests:
This report, jointly commissioned by The Legal Education Foundation and The Joseph Rowntree Foundation, is one of a number of parallel reports published alongside Fitzpatrick et al’s (2018) research “Destitution in the UK”. Fitzpatrick et... more
This report, jointly commissioned by The Legal Education Foundation and The Joseph Rowntree Foundation, is one of a number of parallel reports published alongside Fitzpatrick et al’s (2018) research “Destitution in the UK”. Fitzpatrick et al’s (2018) research estimates that: “approximately 1,550,000 people, 365,000 of them children, were destitute in UK at some point over the course of 2017” (Fitzpatrick et al. 2018:2). This report explores the role of the law and access to legal services (or lack thereof) in creating pathways into, and out of, destitution.
The key recommendations are as follows:
A statutory duty on destitution should be created: Primary legislation should establish a clear definition of destitution and a duty on public bodies to protect all persons lawfully present in the UK from destitution.
Legal services should be co-located with other crisis and support services: Co-locating services would reduce referral fatigue and improve the ability of advisors to intervene earlier. The resourcing of legal services is vital in order to render any statutory duty to prevent destitution meaningful.
Government should be placed under a positive duty to facilitate access to social security: The government should be placed under a positive duty to ensure that individuals are receiving the social security benefits they are entitled to. This would require government to address systemic issues in the administration of benefits.
The key recommendations are as follows:
A statutory duty on destitution should be created: Primary legislation should establish a clear definition of destitution and a duty on public bodies to protect all persons lawfully present in the UK from destitution.
Legal services should be co-located with other crisis and support services: Co-locating services would reduce referral fatigue and improve the ability of advisors to intervene earlier. The resourcing of legal services is vital in order to render any statutory duty to prevent destitution meaningful.
Government should be placed under a positive duty to facilitate access to social security: The government should be placed under a positive duty to ensure that individuals are receiving the social security benefits they are entitled to. This would require government to address systemic issues in the administration of benefits.
Research Interests:
The High Court has held that the regulations implementing the new, lower household benefit cap (as introduced in 2016) unlawfully discriminate against lone parents of very young children (under two years old) in receipt of out-of-work... more
The High Court has held that the regulations implementing the new, lower household benefit cap (as introduced in 2016) unlawfully discriminate against lone parents of very young children (under two years old) in receipt of out-of-work benefits. Failure to include these claimants within the exemptions to the policy was incompatible with art.14 ECHR , read with art.8 .
Research Interests:
This article examines judicial reviews of two areas of social security policy and practice in the UK – the household benefit cap and the restriction of bereavement benefits to bereaved spouses and civil partners. While each case... more
This article examines judicial reviews of two areas of social security policy and practice in the UK – the household benefit cap and the restriction of bereavement benefits to bereaved spouses and civil partners. While each case ostensibly concerned discrimination against claimants, in practice much of the legal argument centred on the impact on claimants’ children. The judiciary is revealed to be deeply divided on the lawfulness of the acknowledged discrimination. The article considers what lessons can be drawn about the relative weight that ought to be afforded to claimants’ property rights, the best interests of affected children, anti-discrimination provisions and the state’s stated policy imperatives of cost control and administrative convenience. Insights are also sought into whether devolutionary differences can be identified between the approaches of courts in London and Belfast.
Research Interests:
This article discusses the possible impact of withdrawal from the EU on social security in Scotland. Despite the relatively limited role of EU membership in shaping the UK social security system, the effects of Brexit could be... more
This article discusses the possible impact of withdrawal from the EU on social security in Scotland. Despite the relatively limited role of EU membership in shaping the UK social security system, the effects of Brexit could be significant, even if largely indirect. The recent EU and independence referenda have allowed devolved elites to portray Scotland as more concerned with social justice and more internationalist than the UK as a whole. Maintaining or enhancing EU citizens’ social rights would be in keeping with this self-image. The Scottish Government’s view that Scotland has a greater need for immigration than other parts of the UK provides a further, pragmatic argument for enhancing its attractiveness as a destination by allowing migrants to access family benefits in particular. The limited extent of devolved social security competences means this is not currently an option. Even if the push for a second independence referendum following the Brexit vote has been put on hold for now, the possibility remains that the Scottish Government will seek renegotiation of the constitutional settlement. Social security is an obvious field for further devolution. The door could hence be opened to divergence from the Department for Work and Pensions on the entitlements of EU migrants.
Research Interests:
The period 2012 to 2016 saw important developments in the role of the UK’s devolved legislatures in shaping the social rights of citizenship. Near-uniformity in social security is being eroded, with competences devolved to Scotland and... more
The period 2012 to 2016 saw important developments in the role of the UK’s devolved legislatures in shaping the social rights of citizenship. Near-uniformity in social security is being eroded, with competences devolved to Scotland and Northern Ireland proceeding with limited divergence from Great Britain. This turn to regionalism is linked with dissatisfaction with UK government approaches. This article examines developments from a social citizenship perspective. Welfare state regionalism is a challenge to Marshall’s perceived unitary view of citizenship. Yet, it is argued, moves towards divergence are driven by regional differences of perspective on citizens’ social rights and reciprocal obligations in a way that emphasises the continued relevance of Marshallian theory. The democratisation of political rights gave birth to social rights in the early 20th century; today, the regionalisation of democratic citizenship enables alternative visions for social citizenship to be articulated and begin to shape welfare services at devolved level.
Research Interests:
The 21st century has seen a shift in emphasis from enabling local authorities to provide opportunities for recreation on private land to the conferment of a general right to access certain types of land in Great Britain. Similar... more
The 21st century has seen a shift in emphasis from enabling local authorities to provide opportunities for recreation on private land to the conferment of a general right to access certain types of land in Great Britain. Similar liberalisation has not occurred in Northern Ireland. This article examines features of the Northern Ireland context that might explain why landowners’ rights continue to trump those of recreational users, drawing on stakeholder interviews and a rural geography conceptual framework. Following historic struggles for land in Ireland, any erosion of owner control is perceived to undermine hard-won rights; in a relatively rural society and agrarian economy, farmers are readily accepted as having the ‘right’ to determine the function of rural land; and recent conflict has depressed outdoor leisure and tourism. Consequently, productive uses of land remain central to rural policy and a countryside movement able to overcome objections to liberalisation has not emerged. Conflict and instability have also left a legacy of social problems and ‘legislative lag’ in higher priority areas that must be addressed before countryside access can move up the political agenda. The paper reveals how, in stakeholders’ eyes, these factors combine to limit the prospects of reform.
Research Interests:
The Scotland Act 2016 devolves new social security powers to the Scottish Parliament. Although its new powers are limited, accounting for only 15% of expenditure on non-pension benefits, the Scottish Government has given an ambitious set... more
The Scotland Act 2016 devolves new social security powers to the Scottish Parliament. Although its new powers are limited, accounting for only 15% of expenditure on non-pension benefits, the Scottish Government has given an ambitious set of commitments for a devolved system. “Respect for the dignity of individuals” is at the heart of this vision. Social security is recognised in international human rights law as being crucial to the protection of human dignity. While human dignity is a core concept in human rights law, it is a poorly defined one and respect has no legal definition.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission contracted Ulster University to look at how social security systems in other countries encompass dignity and respect. This report of their research proposes a legally-grounded definition of dignity and respect and discusses possible means of embedding dignity and respect as core principles underpinning social security in Scotland.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission contracted Ulster University to look at how social security systems in other countries encompass dignity and respect. This report of their research proposes a legally-grounded definition of dignity and respect and discusses possible means of embedding dignity and respect as core principles underpinning social security in Scotland.
Research Interests:
I was a member of the Chartered Institute of Housing's Welfare Changes Forum, whose work informed this report.
Research Interests:
The post-2007 financial crisis has brought renewed interest in a European Unemployment Benefit Scheme (EUBS) as a manifestation of solidarity between citizens of different member states and an economic stabiliser in the event of future... more
The post-2007 financial crisis has brought renewed interest in a European Unemployment Benefit Scheme (EUBS) as a manifestation of solidarity between citizens of different member states and an economic stabiliser in the event of future asymmetric shocks. The EU-wide benefit would operate in tandem with existing national unemployment benefits. This creates challenges of compatibility given the diversity of approaches to social security within the Union, based on at least four philosophies of welfare: liberal, conservative, social democratic and southern European. This article examines potential legal, operational and political difficulties associated with marrying a EUBS that is at heart a conservative system of social insurance to the UK's liberal welfare state. Few legal obstacles exist and although the addition of a new, earnings-related benefit to an already complex mix of social protection would raise significant operational issues, these need not be insurmountable. However, fundamental ideological differences would have rendered the EUBS as proposed politically ill-matched with the UK even absent the June 2016 vote to leave the EU. A contributory income maintenance benefit is a poor fit with a residual, largely means-tested national system whose role is limited to offering protection against severe poverty while maintaining work incentives and minimising costs.
Research Interests:
In 2009, the UK government emphasised that it was “deeply committed” to the maintenance of the state’s social union, embodied in a single social security system. Five years later, the future of this social union appeared less certain than... more
In 2009, the UK government emphasised that it was “deeply committed” to the maintenance of the state’s social union, embodied in a single social security system. Five years later, the future of this social union appeared less certain than at any time since the 1920s. Dissatisfaction with the ‘welfare reform’ agenda of the coalition government was a driver of support for Scottish independence in the 2014 referendum campaign. Meanwhile, the Northern Ireland Assembly failed to pass legislation to mirror the Welfare Reform Act 2012, normally a formality due to the convention of parity in social security; despite Westminster’s subsequent extension of the 2012 reforms to the region, divergence in secondary legislation remains likely. This article draws on the findings of qualitative interviews with politicians and civil servants in both regions during a period covering the conclusion of the Smith Commission’s work on the future of Scottish devolution and the height of a political impasse over Northern Ireland’s Welfare Reform Bill that threatened a constitutional crisis. It considers the extent to which steps towards divergence in the two devolved regions have altered the UK’s social union and to which the two processes have influenced one another.
Research Interests:
The High Court in Northern Ireland has held that the denial of a widowed parent’s allowance on the death of the applicant’s partner, on the grounds that the couple were not married, unlawfully discriminated against her. The refusal of a... more
The High Court in Northern Ireland has held that the denial of a widowed parent’s allowance on the death of the applicant’s partner, on the grounds that the couple were not married, unlawfully discriminated against her. The refusal of a bereavement payment to the same applicant because of her marital status was upheld.
Research Interests:
The Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government of 2010-2015 oversaw profound change in the nature of social citizenship – the right of the citizen to enjoy, and the duty of the state to ensure, a minimum acceptable standard of... more
The Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government of 2010-2015 oversaw profound change in the nature of social citizenship – the right of the citizen to enjoy, and the duty of the state to ensure, a minimum acceptable standard of living. At the level of the UK government, the evolution of social citizenship has been driven by the principle (also central to New Labour social security policy) that paid employment is the best means of ensuring one’s economic welfare and that labour market participation should, for most, be a precondition to accessing social protection. Consequently, conditions associated with the receipt of benefit have been tightened and extended to a wider range of claimant groups, penalties for non-compliance stiffened and the level of many benefits reduced. The rise of the workerist model is illustrated by an examination of the increasing conditionalisation of access to social security for lone parents, a group that until 2007 was largely exempt from compulsory ‘welfare-to-work’ programmes. Meanwhile, in Scotland and Northern Ireland, pressure has grown for greater devolution of social citizenship through meaningful regional control of social security, the main social right of citizenship to remain effectively centralised in 2010. Through qualitative interviews with elite actors in both regions, the thesis explores possible drivers of demand for regionalisation, including dissatisfaction with UK-level developments, differences in ideologies of social citizenship and the specific circumstances of Scotland and Northern Ireland. Consideration is given to the extent to which divergence in social security policy and regionalisation of social citizenship are likely outcomes. Given the importance of opposition to aspects of coalition welfare reform policy and the associated austerity agenda in stimulating regional discontent, it is concluded that the processes of evolution and devolution are intimately linked, and are likely to remain so as further controversial policies are pursued by the new Conservative government.
Research Interests:
The UK government made three key human rights-related commitments in the Good Friday Agreement, the basis for the restoration of devolution and transition from conflict to peace in Northern Ireland: to incorporate the European Convention... more
The UK government made three key human rights-related commitments in the Good Friday Agreement, the basis for the restoration of devolution and transition from conflict to peace in Northern Ireland: to incorporate the European Convention on Human Rights into Northern Ireland law; to consider proposals for a regional Bill of Rights; and to ensure compliance with the state's international obligations in the region. While ECHR compliance is required of devolved institutions by the constitutional legislation, the prospects of a Bill of Rights being enacted appears limited and oversight of compliance with other international obligations is unsatisfactorily placed in political, rather than judicial, hands. Consequently, protection of socioeconomic rights beyond those covered by the ECHR is weak. This paper argues that judicial protection of socioeconomic rights – whether in the form of a Bill of Rights or the incorporation of additional human rights agreements into Northern Ireland law – is required for full implementation of the Agreement. It then considers the implications of such a step for social security in the region. The concluding section highlights political and fiscal implications that would have to be considered.
Research Interests:
The convention of parity of social security provision between Northern Ireland and Great Britain is explored as an example of how the uncodified UK constitution allows hasty, nominally temporary responses to chance events to gain decisive... more
The convention of parity of social security provision between Northern Ireland and Great Britain is explored as an example of how the uncodified UK constitution allows hasty, nominally temporary responses to chance events to gain decisive force in a particular field of governance or policy. As Northern Ireland’s politicians debate the future of parity to an unprecedented extent and Scotland looks to the development of a new post-referendum settlement of which, the Westminster parties have promised, greater devolved responsibility for "welfare" will play a part, discussion of the lessons of parity for those who would favour meaningful regional control of social security is timely. The author suggests that the key challenge is finding a settlement that affords economically weaker regions genuine policy autonomy without diminution of living standards.
Research Interests:
This article discusses the implications for the right to a life in dignity of the "activation turn" (Kenworthy) in the welfare state, characterised by the requirement that social security claimants be available for and undertake... more
This article discusses the implications for the right to a life in dignity of the "activation turn" (Kenworthy) in the welfare state, characterised by the requirement that social security claimants be available for and undertake compulsory activities intended to result in finding employment. Failure to comply may result in loss of benefit for up to three years. This article argues that while activation of claimants is compatible with human rights law, the UK’s sanctions regime may be vulnerable to challenge. The main focus is on whether a regime Webster claims is designed to result in "complete destitution" can be compatible with human dignity. The key focus is on art.3, art.8 and Protocol 1, art.1 (P1-1) of the ECHR and their relationship to three elements of the protection of human dignity identified by McCrudden: prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment, individual autonomy and satisfaction of essential needs.
Research Interests:
Article 26 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child protects the child’s right to “benefit from social security.” As the Committee on the Rights of the Child has yet to issue any interpretative guidance, this rather bare statement... more
Article 26 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child protects the child’s right to “benefit from social security.” As the Committee on the Rights of the Child has yet to issue any interpretative guidance, this rather bare statement demands elaboration. This paper explores what the child’s right to social security might mean in practice, particularly in the UK context. Reference is made to other UNCRC provisions and rights conferred by other instruments, notably the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, European Social Charter and European Convention on Human Rights as well as UK and ECHR case law. The normative content of the right can be tied closely to the child’s right to development, an adequate standard of living and to have his or her best interests treated as a primary consideration, general rights to social security and social assistance, the right to family protection and the right to respect for family life. Ultimately, any hope of an enforceable right in the UK depends on the ECHR, with article 8 the most likely vehicle for a child’s right to social security. Recent case law hints that the courts may be taking small steps towards carving out space in article 8 for such a right, albeit in conjunction with article 3(1) UNCRC (the best interests of the child) rather than article 26. However, it is observed that to date the right to family life has been more effectively deployed in defence of existing entitlements than as a means of asserting a social floor for households with dependent children. The paper considers the scope for a more ambitious interpretation and highlights the need for a more clearly defined right to underpin future empirical research into whether it is fulfilled in practice.
Research Interests:
Pension systems globally are in a period of transformative change as governments struggle to manage the twin constraints of an ageing population and fragile government budgets in the context of the economic recession. In the policy debate... more
Pension systems globally are in a period of
transformative change as governments struggle
to manage the twin constraints of an ageing
population and fragile government budgets in the
context of the economic recession. In the policy
debate and public discourse on pension systems
and the changes needed for sustainability, the
gender implications of these changes rarely receive
serious attention, though a body of literature
has documented the unequal access to pension
by gender. (Frericks, Maier and de Graaf, 2007;
Ivosevic, 2009).
Within the UK and the Republic of Ireland, the
pensions system has begun to address barriers
to equal access by gender. However, women
continue to experience differential access to
pensions, and particularly occupational and
private pensions. Thus there is a need to explore
the motivations and behaviours of women in
relation to their pension provision. This research
project focuses on older women workers, a
particularly vulnerable group in terms of their
access to pensions. The research, a collaborative
undertaking between NUI Galway and Queen’s
University Belfast explores older women workers’
access to pensions in the Republic of Ireland (ROI)
and Northern Ireland (NI), to understand their
vulnerabilities, perspectives and strategies for
realising pension entitlement.
transformative change as governments struggle
to manage the twin constraints of an ageing
population and fragile government budgets in the
context of the economic recession. In the policy
debate and public discourse on pension systems
and the changes needed for sustainability, the
gender implications of these changes rarely receive
serious attention, though a body of literature
has documented the unequal access to pension
by gender. (Frericks, Maier and de Graaf, 2007;
Ivosevic, 2009).
Within the UK and the Republic of Ireland, the
pensions system has begun to address barriers
to equal access by gender. However, women
continue to experience differential access to
pensions, and particularly occupational and
private pensions. Thus there is a need to explore
the motivations and behaviours of women in
relation to their pension provision. This research
project focuses on older women workers, a
particularly vulnerable group in terms of their
access to pensions. The research, a collaborative
undertaking between NUI Galway and Queen’s
University Belfast explores older women workers’
access to pensions in the Republic of Ireland (ROI)
and Northern Ireland (NI), to understand their
vulnerabilities, perspectives and strategies for
realising pension entitlement.
Research Interests:
"Legislation on access to the countryside in Great Britain was reformed – and liberalised – in 2000 (England and Wales) and 2003 (Scotland). Similar change has not occurred in Northern Ireland, where the legislation remains modelled on... more
"Legislation on access to the countryside in Great Britain was reformed – and liberalised – in 2000 (England and Wales) and 2003 (Scotland). Similar change has not occurred in Northern Ireland, where the legislation remains modelled on that passed for England and Wales in 1949. No general statutory right of access exists, except in respect of publicly owned forests; access to the countryside is otherwise dependent on a limited number of public rights of way, exercise of discretionary powers by local government and tolerance by landowners. In addition, there is evidence that fewer access opportunities have been secured than under the 1949 legislation in England and Wales.
This dissertation examines, through a review of literature and empirical research, reasons why access has proved more difficult to secure under current legislation for Northern Ireland than under a similar regime in Great Britain, and why reforms of the early 21st century have not been replicated. The absence of a tradition of access, political influence of landowners resistant to access and problems of governance are identified as the three key factors underpinning lack of access in Northern Ireland. Prospects – and potential drivers – of future reform are also considered."
This dissertation examines, through a review of literature and empirical research, reasons why access has proved more difficult to secure under current legislation for Northern Ireland than under a similar regime in Great Britain, and why reforms of the early 21st century have not been replicated. The absence of a tradition of access, political influence of landowners resistant to access and problems of governance are identified as the three key factors underpinning lack of access in Northern Ireland. Prospects – and potential drivers – of future reform are also considered."
Research Interests:
Many of the social patterns evidenced by individuals who have experienced justiciable problems also apply to those individuals who have experienced destitution. This paper examines links between legal problems, access to legal advice and... more
Many of the social patterns evidenced by individuals who have experienced justiciable problems also apply to those individuals who have experienced destitution. This paper examines links between legal problems, access to legal advice and representation (or lack thereof) and pathways into and out of destitution. Findings encompass a legal definition of destitution; analysis of legal issues contributing to destitution; and identification of potential advice points and barriers for those experiencing destitution. A proposed legal definition of destitution, drawing on human rights, immigration and asylum law, social security law and the common law, has much in common with Fitzpatrick and others’ definition but, crucially, only rarely is there an absolute duty on the part of the state to prevent or alleviate destitution. Key legal triggers of destitution – social security, housing and debt problems – flow from underlying sources of increased vulnerability to both destitution and other legal problems, notably family breakdown, ill health and labour market exclusion. While opportunities for legal interventions to make a difference are identified, interviewees’ experiences ultimately speak to a failure of social citizenship and the need for policy change that reduces reliance on a discretionary, patchy and stigmatised safety net of local government and charitable support for protection against social risk.
Research Interests:
The UK’s conditional welfare state challenges three aspects of Marshallian citizenship theory. First, the proposition that the citizenship should have sufficient resources to “live the life of a civilised being.” This paper suggests that... more
The UK’s conditional welfare state challenges three aspects of Marshallian citizenship theory. First, the proposition that the citizenship should have sufficient resources to “live the life of a civilised being.” This paper suggests that social security in the UK, even at the full rate of benefit, does not guarantee all claimants sufficient income for a normal standard of living. Once sanctions are added to the mix, even the lower standard of “a modicum of economic welfare” cannot be said to be met. Second, that this “right to welfare” is essentially unconditional. Marshall’s views on this matter are less clear-cut than critics claim – his writings do recognise a duty to work alongside the right to welfare. Nonetheless, the UK’s highly disciplinary approach to claimant activation seems difficult to reconcile with the Marshallian vision. Third, as opposition to the DWP welfare-to-work model fuels regionalist sentiments, that an equal citizenship requires a unitary, national welfare state. In this case, the common portrayal of Marshall as a welfare unionist is challenged by constitutional change and the logic of his own teleology of citizenship. On one hand, a single, uniform welfare state may act as an engine of equality. On the other, if the social rights of citizenship were born of the early 20th century democratisation of political citizenship, today the regionalisation of democratic citizenship provides an opportunity for regional variation in social rights: it is natural that regional political elites’ concerns about the extent of conditionality in the UK social security system should be reflected in policy where the constitutional settlement allows. It is concluded that Marshallian theory remains a useful lens through which to examine citizenship, but that some conventional interpretations may need to be revised for the 21st century.
Research Interests:
An ambition to build a system based on respect for the dignity of claimants has been at the forefront of Scottish social security policy documents since 2014 and is now being enshrined in legislation. The prominence of this aspiration is... more
An ambition to build a system based on respect for the dignity of claimants has been at the forefront of Scottish social security policy documents since 2014 and is now being enshrined in legislation. The prominence of this aspiration is a clear riposte to successive UK Governments whose treatment of working age claimants has been accused of falling short of dignified. A key threat to dignity at UK level is the toughened, post-2012 conditionality regime. Scotland’s range of devolved social security powers is limited, and concrete indications of how a distinctive system might emerge within their scope are just beginning to appear, but the Scottish Government’s commitment to run devolved welfare-to-work programmes on a voluntary basis is a clear statement of intent to reduce conditionality where possible. This paper first examines the compatibility of a highly conditional social security system with the protection of dignity, the foundational principle of human rights law. Findings from an empirical study of Scottish policymakers’ views on the welfare state are used to demonstrate the importance of the post-2012 approach to claimant activation in building support for social security devolution and a vision for a regional approach. Consideration is then given to the extent to which Scotland can develop an approach to activation that better respects the dignity of claimants within the current constitutional settlement, and the extent to which it has begun to do so in the early period of social security devolution. Ultimately, it is suggested, fulfilment of the vision is likely to require a continued drive for further devolved competence.
Research Interests:
This paper reports findings from the authors’ current research on the links between access to legal advice and representation (or lack thereof) and pathways into and out of destitution. The project builds on work by Fitzpatrick and others... more
This paper reports findings from the authors’ current research on the links between access to legal advice and representation (or lack thereof) and pathways into and out of destitution. The project builds on work by Fitzpatrick and others (2016) on the definition and prevalence of destitution in the UK and encompasses a review of literature on legal need and access to advice and representation; a legal definition of destitution; analysis of legal issues contributing to destitute for 40 interviewees; and identification of potential advice points and barriers for those experiencing destitution. Emerging findings suggest that many of the social patterns evidenced by individuals who have experienced justiciable problems also apply to those individuals who have experienced episodes of destitution, notably social security and housing problems and related adverse events that increase vulnerability to both destitution and other legal problems. The proposed legal definition of destitution, drawing on human rights, immigration and asylum law, social security law and the common law, differs somewhat from Fitzpatrick and others’ definition but the key finding here is that only rarely is there an absolute duty on the part of the state to prevent or alleviate destitution. Interviewees’ experiences speak to a failure of social citizenship, with gaps or inadequacies in the post-2012 social security system a common cause of destitution, with a discretionary, patchy, sometimes hard-to-access and frequently stigmatised safety net of local government and charitable support far from guaranteed to catch those who fall through the holes.
Research Interests:
TH Marshall’s conception of social citizenship is closely linked with the replacement of a patchy, unreliable, discretionary and highly stigmatised range of services for the relief of poverty with a comprehensive welfare state between... more
TH Marshall’s conception of social citizenship is closely linked with the replacement of a patchy, unreliable, discretionary and highly stigmatised range of services for the relief of poverty with a comprehensive welfare state between 1911 and 1948. As social security reforms, driven by austerity and a negative construction of claimants, turn the focus back on local government and the voluntary sector for the support of the ‘undeserving’ migrant and unemployed poor, this paper asks what has become of Marshall’s ‘right to welfare’ in the 21st century. Drawing findings from an ongoing study of destitution in the UK, it examines the experiences of those for whom – due to gaps in the safety net or the exercise of decision maker discretion – the fulfilment of social ‘rights’ is once again becoming dependent on knowing where to seek support, having access to the right gatekeeper and enduring social stigma.
Research Interests:
Article 26 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child protects the child’s right to “benefit from social security.” As the Committee on the Rights of the Child has yet to issue any interpretative guidance, this rather bare statement... more
Article 26 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child protects the child’s right to “benefit from social security.” As the Committee on the Rights of the Child has yet to issue any interpretative guidance, this rather bare statement demands elaboration. This paper explores what the child’s right to social security might mean in practice, particularly in the UK context. Reference is made to other UNCRC provisions and rights conferred by other instruments, notably the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, European Social Charter and European Convention on Human Rights as well as UK and ECHR case law. The normative content of the right can be tied closely to the child’s right to development, an adequate standard of living and to have his or her best interests treated as a primary consideration, general rights to social security and social assistance, the right to family protection and the right to respect for family life. Ultimately, any hope of an enforceable right in the UK depends on the ECHR, with article 8 the most likely vehicle for a child’s right to social security. Recent case law hints that the courts may be taking small steps towards carving out space in article 8 for such a right, albeit in conjunction with article 3(1) UNCRC (the best interests of the child) rather than article 26. However, it is observed that to date the right to family life has been more effectively deployed in defence of existing entitlements than as a means of asserting a social floor for households with dependent children. The paper considers the scope for a more ambitious interpretation and highlights the need for a more clearly defined right to underpin future empirical research into whether it is fulfilled in practice.
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Powerpoint presentation used at the launch of the report on Destitution and paths to justice (see 'Papers' section)
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This paper explores the impact of conditionality in the post-2006 UK social security system on claimants' economic welfare, wellbeing and employment prospects.
Research Interests:
Presentation to Scottish Government and civil society stakeholders based on previously published report for the Equality and Human Rights Commission on 'Social security systems based on dignity and respect'
Research Interests:
This presentation to the Expert Advisory Group on Disability and Carers' Benefits explores the meaning of the concepts of dignity and respect in the context of social security and ways in which the Scottish Government might live up to its... more
This presentation to the Expert Advisory Group on Disability and Carers' Benefits explores the meaning of the concepts of dignity and respect in the context of social security and ways in which the Scottish Government might live up to its promise to make these the foundation of the new devolved social security system. It is based on a report on Social Security Systems Based on Dignity and Respect, funded and published by the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Research Interests:
Research on the welfare state may examine the development of high-level policy, street-level implementation of policy or the impact of policy developments on claimants’ everyday lives. Empirical studies correspondingly tend to focus on... more
Research on the welfare state may examine the development of high-level policy, street-level implementation of policy or the impact of policy developments on claimants’ everyday lives. Empirical studies correspondingly tend to focus on different actors within the system. This participatory workshop will bring together academics with divergent approaches to researching various aspects of social welfare policy development and implementation to discuss the experience of research with different actors in the process. It will consider the opportunities and limitations associated with a focus on particular groups, as well as exploring the potential for research that works with several stakeholder categories simultaneously. The workshop will include short presentations from individuals who have recently researched ‘welfare’ by interviewing street level workers (Crossley), elite policy makers (Simpson) and out-of-work benefit recipients (Patrick). Presentations will highlight the advantages and challenges implicit in research with these groups, as well as the specific insights that can be gained from work with each group. There will then be opportunities for small group activities and discussion, before a final whole group interactive session looking at how we can best use these different forms of knowledge and expertise to better understand the ‘welfare’ policy making process, and its impact.
Research Interests:
The impact of EU membership on national social security systems has been limited: member states have been required to open up some benefits to immigrants from other member states, but there has been relatively little pressure for... more
The impact of EU membership on national social security systems has been limited: member states have been required to open up some benefits to immigrants from other member states, but there has been relatively little pressure for harmonisation. Ironically, the UK's withdrawal occurs just as proposals for a new 'pillar of social rights' suggest the Union may take a closer interest in this field of policy. Nonetheless, Brexit could have a significant (if largely indirect) impact on social security in Scotland. The recent EU and independence referenda have allowed devolved elites to portray Scotland as more concerned with social justice and more internationalist than the UK as a whole. This social justice narrative underpins commitments to build a Scottish social security system based on respect for the dignity of individuals and the potential raising of the profile of social and economic rights at devolved level. Maintaining or enhancing EU citizens' social rights would be in keeping with this self-image. The Scottish Government's argument that Scotland has a greater need for immigration than other parts of the UK provides a further, pragmatic argument for enhancing its attractiveness as a destination by allowing migrants to access family benefits in particular. The limited extent of devolved social security competences means this is not currently an option. However, the push for a second independence referendum that has followed the Brexit vote points to the possibility of further renegotiation of the constitutional settlement after the general election. Social security is an obvious field for further devolution. The door could hence be opened to divergence from DWP on the entitlements of EU migrants, and potentially in other aspects of policy.
Research Interests:
Successive governments since the 1980s have sought to rework and in many respects reduce the social rights of citizenship in the UK, culminating in the ‘welfare reform’ projects of the recent Cameron governments. This period saw an... more
Successive governments since the 1980s have sought to rework and in many respects reduce the social rights of citizenship in the UK, culminating in the ‘welfare reform’ projects of the recent Cameron governments. This period saw an already ungenerous, residual system of working age social security further pared back through cuts to benefit rates, more restrictive eligibility criteria and toughened claimant conditionality. Alongside a self-imposed policy imperative of reducing the public deficit, these reforms were driven by a vision of supporting ‘welfare dependents’ into paid employment as a mechanism for social and citizenship inclusion. The co-authors have each researched social citizenship in the Cameron years, but from different disciplinary perspectives and with a focus on different actors. Patrick’s research, situated within the social policy discipline, examines the experiences of claimants faced with both an increasingly ungenerous, disciplinary system and a related political narrative that can appear to question their worth as citizens. Her findings reveal the ways in which the dominant citizenship narrative can serve to alienate, ‘other’ and undermine the lives and contributions of those in receipt of out-of-work benefits. Simpson’s work, from a socio-legal perspective, focuses on elite actors’ constructions of state responsibility for citizens’ economic welfare, showing that policymakers at different tiers of government are not necessarily united in their vision for how the welfare state should treat claimants. In discussing both pieces of research, this paper demonstrates the need for a combination of approaches for a full understanding of how the current citizenship narrative is conceptualised by elites, how this translates into a set of legal provisions and how it is lived and experienced from below. The authors consider the insights gained from their respective approaches as well as their associated limitations and invite delegates to join a discussion about whether academic disciplinary affiliations help or hinder the development of a rounded understanding of social citizenship.
Research Interests:
This paper examines two recent judicial reviews of social security policy and practice in the UK. SG argued that the household benefit cap in Great Britain, introduced following the Welfare Reform Act 2012, unlawfully discriminates... more
This paper examines two recent judicial reviews of social security policy and practice in the UK. SG argued that the household benefit cap in Great Britain, introduced following the Welfare Reform Act 2012, unlawfully discriminates against women. While the review ultimately failed, the various judgments reveal fundamental differences in judicial positions on the question. McLaughlin argued that the restriction of bereavement benefits in Northern Ireland to bereaved spouses and civil partners – excluding unmarried cohabitants – represents unlawful discrimination on the basis of marital status. This case reveals similar judicial divisions: the review was successful at first instance, with this decision overturned by the Court of Appeal – a further appeal to the Supreme Court is pending. While each case ostensibly concerned discrimination against claimants, in practice much of the legal argument centred on the impact on claimants' children. The paper considers what lessons can be drawn from the various judgments about the relative weight that ought to be afforded to claimants' property rights, the best interests of affected children, anti-discrimination provisions and the state's stated policy imperatives of cost control and administrative convenience. Insights are also sought into whether devolutionary differences can be identified between the approaches of courts in London and Belfast.
Research Interests:
Is a new welfare state emerging in Northern Ireland? Change is certainly occurring as the region rapidly catches up with the efforts of the coalition and Conservative governments in Great Britain to reshape the social security system for... more
Is a new welfare state emerging in Northern Ireland? Change is certainly occurring as the region rapidly catches up with the efforts of the coalition and Conservative governments in Great Britain to reshape the social security system for the 21st century. However, the delay between the welfare reform legislation for Great Britain and that for Northern Ireland also demonstrates that in the devolution era, a single UK approach to supporting citizens’ welfare can no longer be taken for granted.
Ulster University was delighted to welcome members of the Committee for Communities to our seminar on ‘The New Welfare State?’, providing an opportunity to reflect on the lessons of the last mandate and start a conversation about the new Committee’s priorities for the new Assembly term, involving members, Ulster University academics and representatives of various voluntary sector stakeholders. This focused on three core, and interconnected, policy areas within the remit of the Department and the Committee, and in which the University offers particular expertise: social security, housing and child poverty.
Ulster University was delighted to welcome members of the Committee for Communities to our seminar on ‘The New Welfare State?’, providing an opportunity to reflect on the lessons of the last mandate and start a conversation about the new Committee’s priorities for the new Assembly term, involving members, Ulster University academics and representatives of various voluntary sector stakeholders. This focused on three core, and interconnected, policy areas within the remit of the Department and the Committee, and in which the University offers particular expertise: social security, housing and child poverty.
Research Interests:
This is a keynote address, delivered at a seminar on 'The New Welfare State' hosted by the School of Law, Transitional Justice Institute and Institute for Research in the Social Sciences, Ulster University. The seminar involved Ulster... more
This is a keynote address, delivered at a seminar on 'The New Welfare State' hosted by the School of Law, Transitional Justice Institute and Institute for Research in the Social Sciences, Ulster University. The seminar involved Ulster academics, the Northern Ireland Assembly Committee for Communities and voluntary sector stakeholders.
Research Interests:
Social security policy since 1997 has largely been driven by a ‘welfare-to-work’ agenda. However, while New Labour combined claimant activation with increased levels of support the Cameron governments’ approach has been dominated by... more
Social security policy since 1997 has largely been driven by a ‘welfare-to-work’ agenda. However, while New Labour combined claimant activation with increased levels of support the Cameron governments’ approach has been dominated by disciplinary measures. This paper examines the extent to which the UK government’s agenda, still the main force in shaping social protection state-wide, is in fact an English agenda that other regions would prefer not to adopt given meaningful policy autonomy. Drawing on the findings of empirical research with elite actors at devolved level it seeks to draw conclusions about how a Scottish or Northern Irish welfare state might differ from the English/UK model. It suggests that Scottish elites, while embracing welfare-to-work objectives, offer a vision of an enabling welfare state in which disciplinary measures are less central to promoting transition to employment. This perspective is likely to fuel continued demand for devolved social security competences beyond those in the Scotland Bill, which allow for very limited divergence in out-of-work benefits. In Northern Ireland, where formal devolved competence is constrained by economic weakness, greater buy-in to the disciplinary model is found to be tempered by a desire to develop what is portrayed as a more proportionate approach to conditionality. This philosophy underpins some of the ‘mitigating’ measures being put in place as the region belatedly transposes most of the measures in the Welfare Reform Act 2012.
Research Interests:
This is an edited version of a plenary address delivered at the Child Poverty Action Group Scotland Welfare Rights conference. Along with presentations Peter Dwyer (University of York) and Sally Witcher (Inclusion Scotland) it discusses... more
This is an edited version of a plenary address delivered at the Child Poverty Action Group Scotland Welfare Rights conference. Along with presentations Peter Dwyer (University of York) and Sally Witcher (Inclusion Scotland) it discusses how human dignity might be protected in the UK's social security system.
Research Interests:
The nature of the citizen’s social rights, and how these are realised in practice, is intimately linked to ideological perspectives on social citizenship. Reform of UK social security law since 2007 has been firmly grounded in the... more
The nature of the citizen’s social rights, and how these are realised in practice, is intimately linked to ideological perspectives on social citizenship. Reform of UK social security law since 2007 has been firmly grounded in the political belief that paid employment should form the “key to citizenship” (Lister, 2003), as the route to economic security and social participation. The same period has seen an apparent erosion of political support for the view that social citizenship and social protection systems should be “national in character” (R (Carson) v SSWP [2005]) as devolved regions’ concern with UK government policy has translated into demands for increased regional autonomy in the field of social security. This paper presents provisional findings from a socio-legal study of social citizenship in the devolutionary UK. Through legal and policy analysis and qualitative interviews with elected representatives and civil servants it considers the extent to which devolved level political responses to the Welfare Reform Act 2012 present a challenge to the 1998 devolution settlement. At first glance, there appears to be a contrast between Northern Ireland, where full devolved competence has to date resulted in little divergence from UK government approaches to social security (Simpson, 2015), and Scotland, whose government’s open hostility to the 2012 Act can find little legislative expression due to lack of competence. Whether this distinction survives closer inspection and the role of conceptions of social citizenship and national identity in informing views on the merits of a shared UK social citizenship will be interrogated. As Northern Ireland questions to an unprecedented extent the merits of parity with Great Britain in social security and Scotland looks to the devolution of new powers in the field, consideration will also be given to ways in which policy in the devolved regions might diverge from the Westminster model.
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In 2009, the UK government emphasised that it was “deeply committed” to the maintenance of the state’s social union, embodied in a single social security system. Five years later, the future of this social union appeared less certain than... more
In 2009, the UK government emphasised that it was “deeply committed” to the maintenance of the state’s social union, embodied in a single social security system. Five years later, the future of this social union appeared less certain than at any time since the 1920s. The role of dissatisfaction with the welfare reform agenda of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government as a driver of support for Scottish independence in the recent referendum campaign – which, despite the ultimate ‘no’ vote, has led to the revision of the powers of the Scottish Parliament in fields including social security – is highlighted in the submission by Mooney and Scott. At the same time, concern in Northern Ireland at the UK government agenda has led to a delay of three years in the passage of legislation to mirror the Welfare Reform Act 2012, normally a formality due to the well-established convention of parity in social security, which has acted as a strong brake on the region’s formal devolved competence. Drawing on the findings of qualitative interviews with politicians and civil servants in both regions between November 2014 and March 2015 – a period covering the conclusion of the Smith Commission’s work on the future of Scottish devolution and the height of a political impasse over Northern Ireland’s Welfare Reform Bill that threatened a constitutional crisis – this paper considers the extent to which the two processes have reflected and/or influenced one another. Although both are devolved regions of the UK, separated by just 19km of sea, the constitutional, ideological, party political and fiscal contexts in which the welfare reform controversy has been played out in each jurisdiction differ dramatically. Emerging findings will be used to explore the extent to which the perspectives and aspirations of key actors and the ultimate outcomes on each side of the North Channel were influenced by developments on the other.
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Briefing on the historic context surrounding and recent developments in devolved control of social security in Northern Ireland, with a focus on the principle of parity with Great Britain, delivered to Scottish Government staff.
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The UK government makes three key human rights-related commitments in the Good Friday Agreement, the basis for the restoration of devolution and transition from conflict to peace in Northern Ireland: incorporate the European Convention on... more
The UK government makes three key human rights-related commitments in the Good Friday Agreement, the basis for the restoration of devolution and transition from conflict to peace in Northern Ireland: incorporate the European Convention on Human Rights into Northern Ireland law, consider proposals for a regional Bill of Rights and ensure compliance with the state’s international obligations in the province. While ECHR compliance is required of devolved institutions by the constitutional legislation, the prospects of a Bill of Rights being enacted appear scant and oversight of compliance with other international obligations is unsatisfactorily placed in political, rather than judicial, hands. Consequently, protection of socio-economic rights beyond those covered by ECHR is weak. This paper argues that judicial protection of socio-economic rights – whether in the form of a Bill of Rights or the incorporation of additional human rights agreements into Northern Ireland law – is required for full implementation of the Agreement. It then considers the implications of such a step for social security in the region, in light of Northern Ireland’s unique legislative competence in this field tempered by the long-established convention (the parity principle) that policy should mirror developments in Great Britain. Recent UK government reforms have generated considerable hostility in all three devolved regions, placing parity under unprecedented political pressure. From a legal perspective, it is suggested that one key element of the reform package – the sanctions regime for breach of conditions by claimants – is already difficult to reconcile with Northern Ireland’s ECHR obligations. The placing of socio-economic rights instruments on equal footing with ECHR would call into question the competence of the Assembly to continue adherence to other aspects of the Westminster model, notably the level of benefits. The concluding section highlights the profound political and fiscal implications that would have to be considered.
Research Interests: Human Rights, Welfare State, Devolution, politics and social poilicy, Social Justice, Transitional Justice, and 8 moreSocio Economic Rights, European Convention of Human Rights, Social Security, Public Policy - Social Welfare Policy, Politics of Devolution in the UK, Good Friday Agreement, Northern Ireland and the Troubles, and European Social Charter
This paper discusses the implications for the right to a life in dignity (article 1 CFR) of the “activation turn” in the welfare state. The concept of “dignity,” lacking consistent definition, has been described as a better basis for... more
This paper discusses the implications for the right to a life in dignity (article 1 CFR) of the “activation turn” in the welfare state. The concept of “dignity,” lacking consistent definition, has been described as a better basis for “judicial manipulation” than “principled decision making.” Nonetheless, it is possible to discern a standard of living deemed compatible from the various references in international human rights agreements to a “decent” or “adequate” standard of living, freedom from inhuman or degrading treatment and the right to a private and family life, as well as to dignity itself. The “activation turn” (while the focus here is on the UK, the phenomenon is international ) is characterised by the requirement that social security claimants be available for paid employment and undertake compulsory activities intended to result in finding employment. Failure to comply may result in sanctions, the maximum applicable being loss of benefit for three years. To date, the most significant challenge to conditionality in the UK resulted in the rejection of a claim that the right to freedom from forced labour was violated. This paper argues that while activation of claimants is compatible with the human rights instruments, the UK’s sanctions regime may be vulnerable to challenge. The main focus is on whether a regime claimed to be designed to result in “complete destitution” can be compatible with human dignity. While the socio-economic rights instruments will be discussed, given their non-integration into UK law the key focus is on article 3, article 8 and P1-1 ECHR and their relationship to three elements of the protection of human dignity as identified by McCrudden: prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment, individual autonomy and satisfaction of essential needs. In each case it is concluded that there is potential for violation of the right to dignity, either in individual cases or in the general operation of the policy.
Research Interests:
A presentation of early findings of a review of literature on social work and political conflict
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Van Caenegem (2009) asks whether constitutions result from “chance or grand design,” identifying the UK’s uncodified constitution as an example of the former. This paper will use the example of the governance of social security in... more
Van Caenegem (2009) asks whether constitutions result from “chance or grand design,” identifying the UK’s uncodified constitution as an example of the former. This paper will use the example of the governance of social security in Northern Ireland to demonstrate how, even when a written constitutional act is in place, responses to unforeseen developments can gain a constitutional or quasi-constitutional force not necessarily envisaged at the time. Specifically, its focus is on how the UK government’s bail-out of the Northern Ireland unemployment insurance fund in the 1920s established the principle of parity of social security provision between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The result of this development has been that the latter’s status as the only UK region with devolved control of social security has in practice been almost meaningless: almost no policy divergence has occurred despite increasing concern since the early 1980s that this may mean the adoption in Northern Ireland of an approach less well fitted to the region’s circumstances than to those of Great Britain. The paper argues that the different treatment of social security in Northern Ireland’s devolution settlement compared to those for Scotland and Wales is largely a result of historical timing, the allocation of devolved competences dating from 1914 as opposed to 1998. It goes on to examine reasons – both fiscal and those linked to the ideology of the unionist government of the 1920s – for the emergence and entrenchment of the parity principle and considers arguments as to how well parity has served Northern Ireland. Finally, it concludes with a brief discussion of the prospects of parity, and the common approach to social security in the UK as a whole, being eroded as the 1998 devolution settlement evolves.
Research Interests:
One ‘right to walk’ has made headlines on an annual basis since the paramilitary ceasefires in Northern Ireland (NI), the summer marching season bringing regular and sometimes violent disputes between the loyal orders and nationalist... more
One ‘right to walk’ has made headlines on an annual basis since the paramilitary ceasefires in Northern Ireland (NI), the summer marching season bringing regular and sometimes violent disputes between the loyal orders and nationalist groups. Away from the media spotlight, Ireland’s troubled history continues to have an impact on the ‘other right to walk’. Here, growing interest in countryside recreation and a desire to promote NI as an activity tourism destination clash with possessiveness on the part of landowners, governance issues, security concerns and sectarian tensions, linked to recent and historic conflicts, which result in limited legal rights of access to the countryside.
Following the liberalisation of countryside access legislation at the start of the 21st century, recreational users of rural land in Great Britain enjoy extensive linear and open access rights. This includes a right of pedestrian access to open country in England and Wales and to all undeveloped and uncultivated land in Scotland. In Northern Ireland, where the key legislation remains based on the model in place in England and Wales from 1949 to 2000, access to privately owned land is not normally available as of right, but depends on the exercise of little-used discretionary powers by local government. Consequently, other than the recently-introduced right of pedestrian access to public forests, open access rights apply to only 2.9 hectares of land, with just 313km of public rights of way.
This paper reports the findings of an investigation of the reasons for the relative lack of statutory provision for countryside recreation in Northern Ireland, including qualitative interviews with 15 informants representing key interest groups. Not all of the reasons for Northern Irish exceptionalism are grounded in its status as a post-conflict society – the importance of agriculture to the regional economy and culture was identified as a key factor. However, other issues raised are inextricably linked to the history of conflict, not only in Northern Ireland since the 1960s, but in Ireland over a period of centuries. These include a strong attachment to and desire for absolute control over land on the part of an agricultural community conscious that their recent ancestors fought (sometimes literally) for ownership. Failure to update environmental legislation in an environment of political instability in which security took precedence over any other policy issue, the legacy of concerns for personal safety and, possibly, sectarian rivalry between landowners were also identified as contributing to the illiberal status quo. The most likely driver of change as perceived by the respondents – the desire to increase visitor numbers – is itself associated with the emergence from conflict and ‘normalisation’ of society, which provides new opportunities for the region to market itself as a tourist destination.
Following the liberalisation of countryside access legislation at the start of the 21st century, recreational users of rural land in Great Britain enjoy extensive linear and open access rights. This includes a right of pedestrian access to open country in England and Wales and to all undeveloped and uncultivated land in Scotland. In Northern Ireland, where the key legislation remains based on the model in place in England and Wales from 1949 to 2000, access to privately owned land is not normally available as of right, but depends on the exercise of little-used discretionary powers by local government. Consequently, other than the recently-introduced right of pedestrian access to public forests, open access rights apply to only 2.9 hectares of land, with just 313km of public rights of way.
This paper reports the findings of an investigation of the reasons for the relative lack of statutory provision for countryside recreation in Northern Ireland, including qualitative interviews with 15 informants representing key interest groups. Not all of the reasons for Northern Irish exceptionalism are grounded in its status as a post-conflict society – the importance of agriculture to the regional economy and culture was identified as a key factor. However, other issues raised are inextricably linked to the history of conflict, not only in Northern Ireland since the 1960s, but in Ireland over a period of centuries. These include a strong attachment to and desire for absolute control over land on the part of an agricultural community conscious that their recent ancestors fought (sometimes literally) for ownership. Failure to update environmental legislation in an environment of political instability in which security took precedence over any other policy issue, the legacy of concerns for personal safety and, possibly, sectarian rivalry between landowners were also identified as contributing to the illiberal status quo. The most likely driver of change as perceived by the respondents – the desire to increase visitor numbers – is itself associated with the emergence from conflict and ‘normalisation’ of society, which provides new opportunities for the region to market itself as a tourist destination.
Research Interests:
"While property ownership has been described as a “fole and defpotic dominion… over the external things of the world” (Blackstone) it is truer to describe land ownership as consisting of a “variety of rights and interests” (Wylie).... more
"While property ownership has been described as a “fole and defpotic dominion… over the external things of the world” (Blackstone) it is truer to describe land ownership as consisting of a “variety of rights and interests” (Wylie). Rights of access to privately owned rural land for recreation exemplify the qualified nature of property rights in land and challenge the Blackstonian view.
Statutory provision for countryside recreation varies between UK regions. Scotland provides for open access on foot to most undeveloped and uncultivated land. England and Wales have 189,000km of public rights of way and access to open country (1m hectares in England) (Natural England). Northern Ireland, with no ‘right to roam’, but discretionary local government powers to provide for access, has only 311km of public rights of way and 2.9 hectares of open access land (Hansard).
Drawing on an empirical study completed by the author and previous literature, the paper will examine how ideologies of land ownership and the countryside combine with the centrality of rural land to Ireland’s turbulent history to form a barrier to a more liberal countryside access regime in NI.
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Statutory provision for countryside recreation varies between UK regions. Scotland provides for open access on foot to most undeveloped and uncultivated land. England and Wales have 189,000km of public rights of way and access to open country (1m hectares in England) (Natural England). Northern Ireland, with no ‘right to roam’, but discretionary local government powers to provide for access, has only 311km of public rights of way and 2.9 hectares of open access land (Hansard).
Drawing on an empirical study completed by the author and previous literature, the paper will examine how ideologies of land ownership and the countryside combine with the centrality of rural land to Ireland’s turbulent history to form a barrier to a more liberal countryside access regime in NI.
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Research Interests:
Interpretations of citizenship typically consider a link between state and citizen, membership of a community and a social status entailing rights to avail of services. Legislative devolution calls into question whether the citizen’s... more
Interpretations of citizenship typically consider a link between state and citizen, membership of a community and a social status entailing rights to avail of services. Legislative devolution calls into question whether the citizen’s bond is closest with the state or the region, the level at which services should be organised and the boundaries of the community to which the citizen belongs.
While some services falling within the rights associated with social citizenship are devolved matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, control of social security is devolved only in Northern Ireland; even here, the convention of parity, financially underwritten by the UK exchequer, means that in practice almost every aspect of the system for Great Britain is replicated.
This paper will examine the future prospects of a single UK social citizenship in a context of emerging political citizenships at regional level
While some services falling within the rights associated with social citizenship are devolved matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, control of social security is devolved only in Northern Ireland; even here, the convention of parity, financially underwritten by the UK exchequer, means that in practice almost every aspect of the system for Great Britain is replicated.
This paper will examine the future prospects of a single UK social citizenship in a context of emerging political citizenships at regional level
Research Interests:
Symposium: Gender and Pensions Reform: Norms, Vulnerabilities and Consequences Pension reforms are high on the policy agenda of governments across the world with demographic profile shifting to an ageing population. With the financial... more
Symposium: Gender and Pensions Reform: Norms, Vulnerabilities and Consequences
Pension reforms are high on the policy agenda of governments across the world with demographic profile shifting to an ageing population. With the financial and economic crisis, a new urgency has entered the pensions reform discourse as governments are on the verge of fiscal breakdown.
Within Europe, the main underlying dynamic of pension reforms is to shift the expectation that the state will/is obliged to provide a pension with defined benefits that would replace average (and in some cases the last year’s) earned income pre-retirement. Options such as increase in retirement age, increased contribution by workers and privatization of pension funds are dominating the debate. Already policy measures have been introduced in Ireland and the UK to increase retirement age for new entrants and pensionable age for those currently employed as well as tax relief on private pensions. Another key element of pension reform is shifting the responsibility from the state to individuals and employers. While these measures did result in increased pension contributions to a limited extent, a remaining challenge is that occupational pensions system is not uniform throughout the private sector. One response to this challenge is the adoption of the policy of auto enrolment in occupational pensions in Ireland and the UK by 2014. The pensions reforms underway as well as those being suggested have significant gender implications, which are often neglected in the debate (Murphy and McCashin, 2008). For example, with an Irish pension system traditionally orientated around the male breadwinner framework, furthering the links between formal employment, earnings and pensions through an emphasis on occupational pensions, may only serve to exacerbate any prevalent gender disparity in pension coverage in Ireland. This symposium will examine the gender effects of pension reforms by exploring the role of gender norms in defining options for women and men in terms of pension provision, discussing the specific vulnerabilities of women in formal and informal employment with respect to occupational and private pensions, and highlighting the different work-life trajectories and strategies for securing adequate pension provision for women.
The main objective of the symposium will be to identify key policy messages to ensure that women’s access to pensions is strengthened to make the overall pension systems both equitable and sustainable. Key questions the symposium will address include:
What are the differences between younger and older women in terms of options and strategies?
What factors influence women’s pension savings decisions, particularly additional voluntary contributions?
Are there gender differences between men and women?
How do pension reforms affect rural women, particularly farm women, who have been the most excluded from existing state, occupational and private pension systems?
Do the reforms reinforce their vulnerability or potentially expand their strategic options?
How far does the introduction of national insurance credits go towards addressing the pension disadvantage associated with a gendered division of caring responsibilities?
Pension reforms are high on the policy agenda of governments across the world with demographic profile shifting to an ageing population. With the financial and economic crisis, a new urgency has entered the pensions reform discourse as governments are on the verge of fiscal breakdown.
Within Europe, the main underlying dynamic of pension reforms is to shift the expectation that the state will/is obliged to provide a pension with defined benefits that would replace average (and in some cases the last year’s) earned income pre-retirement. Options such as increase in retirement age, increased contribution by workers and privatization of pension funds are dominating the debate. Already policy measures have been introduced in Ireland and the UK to increase retirement age for new entrants and pensionable age for those currently employed as well as tax relief on private pensions. Another key element of pension reform is shifting the responsibility from the state to individuals and employers. While these measures did result in increased pension contributions to a limited extent, a remaining challenge is that occupational pensions system is not uniform throughout the private sector. One response to this challenge is the adoption of the policy of auto enrolment in occupational pensions in Ireland and the UK by 2014. The pensions reforms underway as well as those being suggested have significant gender implications, which are often neglected in the debate (Murphy and McCashin, 2008). For example, with an Irish pension system traditionally orientated around the male breadwinner framework, furthering the links between formal employment, earnings and pensions through an emphasis on occupational pensions, may only serve to exacerbate any prevalent gender disparity in pension coverage in Ireland. This symposium will examine the gender effects of pension reforms by exploring the role of gender norms in defining options for women and men in terms of pension provision, discussing the specific vulnerabilities of women in formal and informal employment with respect to occupational and private pensions, and highlighting the different work-life trajectories and strategies for securing adequate pension provision for women.
The main objective of the symposium will be to identify key policy messages to ensure that women’s access to pensions is strengthened to make the overall pension systems both equitable and sustainable. Key questions the symposium will address include:
What are the differences between younger and older women in terms of options and strategies?
What factors influence women’s pension savings decisions, particularly additional voluntary contributions?
Are there gender differences between men and women?
How do pension reforms affect rural women, particularly farm women, who have been the most excluded from existing state, occupational and private pension systems?
Do the reforms reinforce their vulnerability or potentially expand their strategic options?
How far does the introduction of national insurance credits go towards addressing the pension disadvantage associated with a gendered division of caring responsibilities?
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Symposium: Gender and Pensions Reform: Norms, Vulnerabilities and Consequences Pension reforms are high on the policy agenda of governments across the world with demographic profile shifting to an ageing population. With the financial... more
Symposium: Gender and Pensions Reform: Norms, Vulnerabilities and Consequences
Pension reforms are high on the policy agenda of governments across the world with demographic profile shifting to an ageing population. With the financial and economic crisis, a new urgency has entered the pensions reform discourse as governments are on the verge of fiscal breakdown.
Within Europe, the main underlying dynamic of pension reforms is to shift the expectation that the state will/is obliged to provide a pension with defined benefits that would replace average (and in some cases the last year’s) earned income pre-retirement. Options such as increase in retirement age, increased contribution by workers and privatization of pension funds are dominating the debate. Already policy measures have been introduced in Ireland and the UK to increase retirement age for new entrants and pensionable age for those currently employed as well as tax relief on private pensions. Another key element of pension reform is shifting the responsibility from the state to individuals and employers. While these measures did result in increased pension contributions to a limited extent, a remaining challenge is that occupational pensions system is not uniform throughout the private sector. One response to this challenge is the adoption of the policy of auto enrolment in occupational pensions in Ireland and the UK by 2014. The pensions reforms underway as well as those being suggested have significant gender implications, which are often neglected in the debate (Murphy and McCashin, 2008). For example, with an Irish pension system traditionally orientated around the male breadwinner framework, furthering the links between formal employment, earnings and pensions through an emphasis on occupational pensions, may only serve to exacerbate any prevalent gender disparity in pension coverage in Ireland. This symposium will examine the gender effects of pension reforms by exploring the role of gender norms in defining options for women and men in terms of pension provision, discussing the specific vulnerabilities of women in formal and informal employment with respect to occupational and private pensions, and highlighting the different work-life trajectories and strategies for securing adequate pension provision for women.
The main objective of the symposium will be to identify key policy messages to ensure that women’s access to pensions is strengthened to make the overall pension systems both equitable and sustainable. Key questions the symposium will address include:
What are the differences between younger and older women in terms of options and strategies?
What factors influence women’s pension savings decisions, particularly additional voluntary contributions?
Are there gender differences between men and women?
How do pension reforms affect rural women, particularly farm women, who have been the most excluded from existing state, occupational and private pension systems?
Do the reforms reinforce their vulnerability or potentially expand their strategic options?
How far does the introduction of national insurance credits go towards addressing the pension disadvantage associated with a gendered division of caring responsibilities?
Pension reforms are high on the policy agenda of governments across the world with demographic profile shifting to an ageing population. With the financial and economic crisis, a new urgency has entered the pensions reform discourse as governments are on the verge of fiscal breakdown.
Within Europe, the main underlying dynamic of pension reforms is to shift the expectation that the state will/is obliged to provide a pension with defined benefits that would replace average (and in some cases the last year’s) earned income pre-retirement. Options such as increase in retirement age, increased contribution by workers and privatization of pension funds are dominating the debate. Already policy measures have been introduced in Ireland and the UK to increase retirement age for new entrants and pensionable age for those currently employed as well as tax relief on private pensions. Another key element of pension reform is shifting the responsibility from the state to individuals and employers. While these measures did result in increased pension contributions to a limited extent, a remaining challenge is that occupational pensions system is not uniform throughout the private sector. One response to this challenge is the adoption of the policy of auto enrolment in occupational pensions in Ireland and the UK by 2014. The pensions reforms underway as well as those being suggested have significant gender implications, which are often neglected in the debate (Murphy and McCashin, 2008). For example, with an Irish pension system traditionally orientated around the male breadwinner framework, furthering the links between formal employment, earnings and pensions through an emphasis on occupational pensions, may only serve to exacerbate any prevalent gender disparity in pension coverage in Ireland. This symposium will examine the gender effects of pension reforms by exploring the role of gender norms in defining options for women and men in terms of pension provision, discussing the specific vulnerabilities of women in formal and informal employment with respect to occupational and private pensions, and highlighting the different work-life trajectories and strategies for securing adequate pension provision for women.
The main objective of the symposium will be to identify key policy messages to ensure that women’s access to pensions is strengthened to make the overall pension systems both equitable and sustainable. Key questions the symposium will address include:
What are the differences between younger and older women in terms of options and strategies?
What factors influence women’s pension savings decisions, particularly additional voluntary contributions?
Are there gender differences between men and women?
How do pension reforms affect rural women, particularly farm women, who have been the most excluded from existing state, occupational and private pension systems?
Do the reforms reinforce their vulnerability or potentially expand their strategic options?
How far does the introduction of national insurance credits go towards addressing the pension disadvantage associated with a gendered division of caring responsibilities?
Research Interests:
Symposium: Gender and Pensions Reform: Norms, Vulnerabilities and Consequences Pension reforms are high on the policy agenda of governments across the world with demographic profile shifting to an ageing population. With the financial... more
Symposium: Gender and Pensions Reform: Norms, Vulnerabilities and Consequences
Pension reforms are high on the policy agenda of governments across the world with demographic profile shifting to an ageing population. With the financial and economic crisis, a new urgency has entered the pensions reform discourse as governments are on the verge of fiscal breakdown.
Within Europe, the main underlying dynamic of pension reforms is to shift the expectation that the state will/is obliged to provide a pension with defined benefits that would replace average (and in some cases the last year’s) earned income pre-retirement. Options such as increase in retirement age, increased contribution by workers and privatization of pension funds are dominating the debate. Already policy measures have been introduced in Ireland and the UK to increase retirement age for new entrants and pensionable age for those currently employed as well as tax relief on private pensions. Another key element of pension reform is shifting the responsibility from the state to individuals and employers. While these measures did result in increased pension contributions to a limited extent, a remaining challenge is that occupational pensions system is not uniform throughout the private sector. One response to this challenge is the adoption of the policy of auto enrolment in occupational pensions in Ireland and the UK by 2014. The pensions reforms underway as well as those being suggested have significant gender implications, which are often neglected in the debate (Murphy and McCashin, 2008). For example, with an Irish pension system traditionally orientated around the male breadwinner framework, furthering the links between formal employment, earnings and pensions through an emphasis on occupational pensions, may only serve to exacerbate any prevalent gender disparity in pension coverage in Ireland. This symposium will examine the gender effects of pension reforms by exploring the role of gender norms in defining options for women and men in terms of pension provision, discussing the specific vulnerabilities of women in formal and informal employment with respect to occupational and private pensions, and highlighting the different work-life trajectories and strategies for securing adequate pension provision for women.
The main objective of the symposium will be to identify key policy messages to ensure that women’s access to pensions is strengthened to make the overall pension systems both equitable and sustainable. Key questions the symposium will address include:
What are the differences between younger and older women in terms of options and strategies?
What factors influence women’s pension savings decisions, particularly additional voluntary contributions?
Are there gender differences between men and women?
How do pension reforms affect rural women, particularly farm women, who have been the most excluded from existing state, occupational and private pension systems?
Do the reforms reinforce their vulnerability or potentially expand their strategic options?
How far does the introduction of national insurance credits go towards addressing the pension disadvantage associated with a gendered division of caring responsibilities?
Pension reforms are high on the policy agenda of governments across the world with demographic profile shifting to an ageing population. With the financial and economic crisis, a new urgency has entered the pensions reform discourse as governments are on the verge of fiscal breakdown.
Within Europe, the main underlying dynamic of pension reforms is to shift the expectation that the state will/is obliged to provide a pension with defined benefits that would replace average (and in some cases the last year’s) earned income pre-retirement. Options such as increase in retirement age, increased contribution by workers and privatization of pension funds are dominating the debate. Already policy measures have been introduced in Ireland and the UK to increase retirement age for new entrants and pensionable age for those currently employed as well as tax relief on private pensions. Another key element of pension reform is shifting the responsibility from the state to individuals and employers. While these measures did result in increased pension contributions to a limited extent, a remaining challenge is that occupational pensions system is not uniform throughout the private sector. One response to this challenge is the adoption of the policy of auto enrolment in occupational pensions in Ireland and the UK by 2014. The pensions reforms underway as well as those being suggested have significant gender implications, which are often neglected in the debate (Murphy and McCashin, 2008). For example, with an Irish pension system traditionally orientated around the male breadwinner framework, furthering the links between formal employment, earnings and pensions through an emphasis on occupational pensions, may only serve to exacerbate any prevalent gender disparity in pension coverage in Ireland. This symposium will examine the gender effects of pension reforms by exploring the role of gender norms in defining options for women and men in terms of pension provision, discussing the specific vulnerabilities of women in formal and informal employment with respect to occupational and private pensions, and highlighting the different work-life trajectories and strategies for securing adequate pension provision for women.
The main objective of the symposium will be to identify key policy messages to ensure that women’s access to pensions is strengthened to make the overall pension systems both equitable and sustainable. Key questions the symposium will address include:
What are the differences between younger and older women in terms of options and strategies?
What factors influence women’s pension savings decisions, particularly additional voluntary contributions?
Are there gender differences between men and women?
How do pension reforms affect rural women, particularly farm women, who have been the most excluded from existing state, occupational and private pension systems?
Do the reforms reinforce their vulnerability or potentially expand their strategic options?
How far does the introduction of national insurance credits go towards addressing the pension disadvantage associated with a gendered division of caring responsibilities?
Research Interests:
This post, an edited version of a paper presented at a meeting of the Disability and Carers’ Benefits Expert Advisory Group, explores the meaning of 'dignity' and 'respect' in the context of social security and discusses how the Scottish... more
This post, an edited version of a paper presented at a meeting of the Disability and Carers’ Benefits Expert Advisory Group, explores the meaning of 'dignity' and 'respect' in the context of social security and discusses how the Scottish Government might live up to its promise to embed the two concepts in its new devolved benefits. It is based on a report on Social Security Systems Based on Dignity and Respect, funded and published by the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Research Interests:
The fall in support, and considerable loss of Parliamentary representation, for the Scottish National Party in the 2017 general election, throws the immediate future of the proindependence project into some doubt. Mark Simpson suggests... more
The fall in support, and considerable loss of Parliamentary representation, for the Scottish National Party in the 2017 general election, throws the immediate future of the proindependence project into some doubt. Mark Simpson suggests that nationalists need to play a longer game, focusing for now on getting the devolved powers they need to create a more equal Scotland within the UK.
Research Interests:
The UK’s social and political unions have always been closely connected. The welfare state forms a crucial part of the glue that holds the state together. The 2014 referendum on Scottish independence was perhaps the greatest challenge to... more
The UK’s social and political unions have always been closely connected. The welfare state forms a crucial part of the glue that holds the state together. The 2014 referendum on Scottish independence was perhaps the greatest challenge to the political union since the partition of Ireland in 1921, and constitutional uncertainty has returned following the vote to leave the EU. Challenges to the political union can be linked to divergent regional visions for the welfare state.
Research Interests:
This project examines the profound changes to social citizenship within the UK that occurred during the five-year term of the Conservative–Liberal Democrat Coalition government. The reforms of 2010–2015 have implications for the minimum... more
This project examines the profound changes to social citizenship
within the UK that occurred during the five-year term of the
Conservative–Liberal Democrat Coalition government. The
reforms of 2010–2015 have implications for the minimum
standard of living the state supports, the citizen’s reciprocal
obligations in return for financial support and the tier of
government at which social rights are defined and realised.
within the UK that occurred during the five-year term of the
Conservative–Liberal Democrat Coalition government. The
reforms of 2010–2015 have implications for the minimum
standard of living the state supports, the citizen’s reciprocal
obligations in return for financial support and the tier of
government at which social rights are defined and realised.
Research Interests:
Denial of a widowed parent’s allowance because the claimant had not been married to her deceased partner unlawfully discriminated against her children, the Northern Ireland High Court has held.
Research Interests:
Equality of opportunity has been described in the Court of Appeal as a “fundamental value of our society.” This bold claim can seem at odds with the lack of success with which the various equality requirements in domestic and... more
Equality of opportunity has been described in the Court of Appeal as a “fundamental value of our society.” This bold claim can seem at odds with the lack of success with which the various equality requirements in domestic and international law have been deployed in defence of social and economic rights in the UK.
Research Interests:
Social security has long occupied an ambiguous place in Northern Ireland’s devolution settlement. Mark Simpson of Ulster University discusses the implications of last month’s decision to temporarily hand legislative competence to... more
Social security has long occupied an ambiguous place in Northern Ireland’s devolution settlement. Mark Simpson of Ulster University discusses the implications of last month’s decision to temporarily hand legislative competence to Westminster.
Research Interests:
Following unsuccessful judicial challenges on human rights grounds to the household benefit cap and to mandatory work placements, Mark Simpson of Ulster University considers whether the fundamental right to human dignity is respected by a... more
Following unsuccessful judicial challenges on human rights grounds to the household benefit cap and to mandatory work placements, Mark Simpson of Ulster University considers whether the fundamental right to human dignity is respected by a third pillar of the UK’s ‘welfare-to-work’ regime – Jobseeker’s Allowance sanctions
Research Interests:
One of the most interesting consequences of the Scottish independence referendum is likely to be revision of how the UK ensures the economic welfare of its most vulnerable citizens through its currently highly centralised social security... more
One of the most interesting consequences of the Scottish independence referendum is likely to be revision of how the UK ensures the economic welfare of its most vulnerable citizens through its currently highly centralised social security system.
Research Interests:
Regardless of its outcome, the referendum on Scottish independence is likely to represent a constitutional moment equivalent to devolution in 1998. This opportunity for renegotiation of the division of competences between tiers of... more
Regardless of its outcome, the referendum on Scottish
independence is likely to represent a constitutional moment
equivalent to devolution in 1998.
This opportunity for renegotiation of the division of
competences between tiers of government coincides with
welfare reforms that have generated considerable hostility
among elected representatives at devolved level. While this
appears to be driving demand for regional control of policy in
Scotland, the experience of Northern Ireland shows that formal
devolution of competence does not necessarily enable policy
divergence. This PhD considers the extent to which substantive
devolved control is feasible and has potential to result in better
outcomes for citizens.
independence is likely to represent a constitutional moment
equivalent to devolution in 1998.
This opportunity for renegotiation of the division of
competences between tiers of government coincides with
welfare reforms that have generated considerable hostility
among elected representatives at devolved level. While this
appears to be driving demand for regional control of policy in
Scotland, the experience of Northern Ireland shows that formal
devolution of competence does not necessarily enable policy
divergence. This PhD considers the extent to which substantive
devolved control is feasible and has potential to result in better
outcomes for citizens.
Research Interests:
A focus on food production and protecting biodiversity should not be at the expense of a third key function of the countryside, access to it by the people.
Research Interests:
The UK has been a leader among EU member states in the promotion of equality of opportunity, with far-reaching duties in place in some regions since 1998. In practice, the jury is still out on whether the equal opportunities legislation... more
The UK has been a leader among EU member states in the promotion of equality of opportunity, with far-reaching duties in place in some regions since 1998. In practice, the jury is still out on whether the equal opportunities legislation has a real impact on the protected groups or simply creates one more administrative hurdle for policymakers.
Research Interests:
Review of H Spandler, J Anderson & B Sapey (eds), Madness, distress and the politics of disablement (Bristol: Policy Press, 2015). Behind a provocative title lies a critical reflection on the classification of mental health problems as... more
Review of H Spandler, J Anderson & B Sapey (eds), Madness, distress and the politics of disablement (Bristol: Policy Press, 2015). Behind a provocative title lies a critical reflection on the classification of mental health problems as ‘disabilities’ that is both fascinating and eclectic. Contributions from a varied line-up of academics, practitioners, activists and users/survivors of mental health and disability services provide a diversity of perspectives and formats.
Research Interests:
Review of M Mandalstam, Safeguarding adults and the law (London: Jessica Kingsley, 2013) – published in Frontline 90 (Winter 2013-14), the in-house journal of the Law Centre NI.
Research Interests:
This book presents a socio-legal examination of national and devolved-level developments in social protection in the UK, through the eyes of politicians and officials at the heart of this process. Since its inception in 1998, devolution... more
This book presents a socio-legal examination of national and devolved-level developments in social protection in the UK, through the eyes of politicians and officials at the heart of this process.
Since its inception in 1998, devolution has altered the character of the UK welfare state, with dramatic change in the 10 years since 2010. A decade of austerity at national level has exposed diverging view in how governments in London, Edinburgh and Belfast view the social rights of citizenship. This political divide has implications for both social security law, as the devolved countries begin to flex their muscles in this key area for citizens' economic welfare, and the constitutional settlement.
The book reflects on the impact of austerity, the referendum on Scottish independence and subsequent changes to the devolution settlement, Northern Ireland's hesitant moves away from parity with Westminster in social protection, withdrawal from the European Union (Brexit), and the possible retreat from austerity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The social union may or may not be weakening; its character is unquestionably changing, and the book lays bare the ideological and pragmatic considerations driving legal developments. TH Marshall's theory of citizenship provides the lens through which these processes are viewed, while itself being reinterpreted in light of the national government's increasing delegation of responsibility for social rights – whether to individuals, the voluntary sector or lower tiers of government.
Since its inception in 1998, devolution has altered the character of the UK welfare state, with dramatic change in the 10 years since 2010. A decade of austerity at national level has exposed diverging view in how governments in London, Edinburgh and Belfast view the social rights of citizenship. This political divide has implications for both social security law, as the devolved countries begin to flex their muscles in this key area for citizens' economic welfare, and the constitutional settlement.
The book reflects on the impact of austerity, the referendum on Scottish independence and subsequent changes to the devolution settlement, Northern Ireland's hesitant moves away from parity with Westminster in social protection, withdrawal from the European Union (Brexit), and the possible retreat from austerity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The social union may or may not be weakening; its character is unquestionably changing, and the book lays bare the ideological and pragmatic considerations driving legal developments. TH Marshall's theory of citizenship provides the lens through which these processes are viewed, while itself being reinterpreted in light of the national government's increasing delegation of responsibility for social rights – whether to individuals, the voluntary sector or lower tiers of government.