And this exercise obviously just looks at the economic returns But we've looked at a lot of the wider benefits of research in humanities/social sciences/arts which stretch far beyond economic returns to support law, education, culture, inclusion & health www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/news/new-rep...

Government has published one of those quiet but important documents that might get overlooked as it is not 'newsy'. The headline finding is that £1 of public R&D investment generates £8 in net economic benefits for the UK over the long term www.gov.uk/government/p...

This day 1966, #aberfan disaster. 116 children killed when a tip collapsed on school. Hillsborough Law would mean Coal Board liars faced criminal prosecution for breach of duty of #candour. Follow us as we research the #hillsboroughlaw journey through Parliament www.youtube.com/watch?v=byJT...

The Three Liars. Our research we found them all: Fakers! Hiders! Deniers! Will Hillsborough Law make them come clean? #ukpolitics #Labour #hillsboroughlaw #LiverpoolFC #postofficescandal #infectedblood #nucleartestveterans #labrats #aberfan #grenfelltower www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGLZ...

As the government gives an update on the Timms Review, read our new report setting out how to fix PIP We find the broken model of an assessment as a 'check' is deeply counterproductive & needs overhauled

Great to be at powerful @turn2us.org.uk report launch in Parliament today, alongside @jrf-uk.bsky.social colleagues! Our social security system should be there for all of us when we need support, and treat people with compassion, dignity and respect #StopTheStigma

Somebody at HMRC needs to be canned for this idiotic ‘fraud-detection’ idea. And I fear future use of AI in welfare cases might well produce this kind of story regularly (as they have in Nevada for example).

Our head of policy Sophie Howes spoke to the Commons Treasury Committee yesterday about why social security is so important for addressing child poverty.

This from X is a striking example of what I argue in today’s column. Reform and the Tories are out here gleefully saying disabled people on Motability should be forced to drive a 3-wheeler, like a scarlet letter. The stigma is not an accident - it’s the design.

Frustrated but hardly surprised by this growing build up of child benefit mishandling cases. They reflect systemic issues with the way our welfare services engage with claimants. No prior engagement re issues. No chance to correct bad data. Just automatic suspension of payments (1/2)

Professor Patrick is one of the leading experts on child poverty in the UK and is on the government's child poverty expert group.

You may think you know how bad this policy is but it's really worth reading the full details. I do think the title is justified.

New post out: "The worst social policy ever" Today we have a guest post from @ruthpatrick0.bsky.social on the abomination that is the two-child limit and why Labour need to scrap it ASAP. Lots of data but also powerful testimony. (Free to read) open.substack.com/pub/samf/p/t...

Dispiriting report on gender equality in architecture: harassment, unequal pay, long hours, power imbalances. Sexism remains "woven into the fabric of practice life." New study by RIBA/@fawcettsociety.bsky.social. www.ribaj.com/intelligence...

UK government will impose student number limits on universities offering poor quality courses as it moves to give the OfS greater powers #highered #EduSky www.timeshighereducation.com/news/governm...

Coming up in Parliament ... This week's social welfare law highlights in the Commons and the Lords www.rightsnet.org.uk/now/post/68570

Deborah James describes how people can end up in enormous amounts of debt to the state when it (often wrongly) says welfare beneficiaries violated its rigid conditions. “Clawing back” money due can be an agonising process battling the state & other debt collectors. blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandp...

The Hillsborough Law (aka Public Office Accountability Bill) will help hold police & other state actors to account for lying & covering up scandals. Follow @cfpjustice.bsky.social to see how other state cover-ups have affected communities across the UK: www.youtube.com/watch?v=byJT...

Follow our real-time research into making of #HillsboroughLaw and join the debate on how laws are made, used and applied to help victims achieve justice: youtube.com/@centreforpe.... #CentreForPeoplesJustice #CFPJ @cfpjustice.bsky.social

🚨BOOK LAUNCH🚨 at the Criminal Justice Centre QM @qmul.bsky.social @crimjusticecentre.bsky.social Alan Norrie, Rethinking Criminal Justice: Punishment, Abolition and Moral Psychology 📅 Wednesday 19th November 6pm - 7.30 📍QMUL Mile End, Room 313 Tix: FREE at tinyurl.com/2s4bf3py Please share!

UK Universities cut 12,000 jobs, more on the way. 40% of Unis in financial crisis. Major exporter destroyed by successive govts Obstacles for foreign students. Low fees in England, lack of govt funding. £267bn student debt. Home student numbers down. How will the UK compete with other nations?

"I just decided, when someone says you can't do something. DO MORE OF IT." -Faith Ringgold (1930-2024) #WomensArt #FridayFeeling

Glad to see this! Justice Secretary has said the government will not reintroduce tribunal fees, contrary to recent reports, noting that ‘Everyone, no matter their income, should be able to get access to justice to challenge unfair behaviour at work’ www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/lammy-r...

Friday treat: this whole - Open Access - collection edited by @conormccormick.bsky.social, David Capper and Norma Dawson has a wonderful, eclectic mix of chapters to delight all those interested in the history of constitutional change.

Removing benefits from those with indefinite leave to remain will leave 100,000s of families facing destitution. And if you think that mass impaired child development, a mental and physical health crisis is in the national interest, I'm afraid you simply aren't thinking things through.

Around 1 in 4 children in Scotland are living in poverty. Poverty remains far too high, and people are feeling overlooked and ignored by politicians. The next Scottish Parliament is an opportunity to build a better future for all children in Scotland. 🔽 1/4

🚨*Tomorrow morning* you can receive a bumper edition of my Digital Welfare State newsletter, packed with good things about Freedom of Information, including the things I found out (and didn't) about how DWP are using AI ✉️Sign up and join over 110 other lucky readers!

I‘m giving a public talk at UCL on Thurs 16 Oct. The title is “Bureaucracy and distrust: the civil service in the constitution” looking at the civil service’s constitutional foundations, and how it might respond to a populist govt. @sirJJkc.bsky.social will chair! www.ucl.ac.uk/laws/events/...

New Fund launched by @brisunipress.bsky.social to support Global South scholars and Early Career Researchers www.alpsp.org/news-publica...

Dr Christopher Rudge, law lecturer at the University of Sydney, says the report that Deloitte prepared for Australia's Department of Employment and Workplace Relations contained “hallucinations” because of an initially undisclosed use of generative AI. Now the government is getting its money back.

Our reaction to Mel Stride’s big day at the Tory conference There are savings to be made in the civil service. But an arbitrary headcount target & ignoring new demands on the state won’t deliver them The hard work of doing that falls to the govt www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/comment/mel-...

Do you trust that the new Hillsborough Law can stop public officials from lying to the public? See our new video on the Hillsborough Law in Parliament and follow for real-time updates: youtube.com/watch?v=MCoS... #HillsboroughLaw #CentreForPeoplesJustice #CFPJ

It may be that the future isn't jobless, but it's worth asking which jobs persist, who performs them, where, under what conditions. And importantly which types of *labour* are maintained, intensified, devalued, etc. Often, AI/tech create more labour, but not necessarily in the form of paid jobs.

Is there room for compromise on the two-child limit? Entirely scrapping it would have the biggest impact on child poverty and be most cost-effective.

Very encouraging to read that the Government is preparing to lift the two-child limit as part of its child poverty strategy, but it is disheartening that options short of scrapping it entirely are still being considered. Thread on why this would be the wrong choice for an ambitious strategy:

To reduce child poverty, government must scrap the two-chid limit. And that means fully scrapping it – no benefit cap, no tapers, no new limit. All children deserve the best start in life, and messing around the edges of this policy won’t cut it. 2/2

Rumours swirling that Government may try to avoid fully scrapping 2 child limit by changing it to a 3 child limit, only lifting it for some groups or giving lower support to 3rd and subsequent children. Helpfully @resfoundation.bsky.social already crunched the numbers, finding that...1/4

Government’s £500 million Fair Pay Agreement for social care workers is welcome, but it’s only a downpayment on a long-term solution www.rightsnet.org.uk/now/post/68377

The way we talk about child poverty doesn’t always help @savechildrenuk.bsky.social @jrf-uk.bsky.social www.rightsnet.org.uk/now/post/68383

If the i paper is right, 'lifting' the 2-child limit might be for working families only, or a 3-child limit. Neither is good enough. Both exclude some of the poorest children. Both impose a penalty for blending families. And both call for questions about rape.

Labour considering charging workers for employment tribunal claims, sources say

1950s Ireland, when capital was the key to matrimony.

A very busy few days covering the Labour Party Conference here in Liverpool. We have wanted to make the creation of a Hillsborough Law front and centre of our coverage as it means so much to this city. Thanks to colleagues @danhaygarth1.bsky.social and @lottgibbons.bsky.social for the team effort

Such vital and important research! Excited to see what the @cfpjustice.bsky.social does - very timely after yesterdays speech too!

As part of the work of our new #CentreForPeoplesJustice @cfpjustice.bsky.social we've created this video about the making of #HillsboroughLaw (aka the Public Office (Accountability) Bill), intended to get public authorities to tell the truth: youtu.be/MCoSZzEOWLk?...

My ILR cost something like £1200 in 2013, what then felt like a huge amount for a PhD student. Citizenship then cost £700 a year later. This now looks positively cheap compared to the current costs of £3k plus for ILR and £1700 for citizenship.

Did you know that the Scottish Government has immediate plans to introduce a top-up benefit for families in Scotland affected by the UK's two child limit? Short 🧵 The Scottish Commission on Social Security scrutinised the draft regulations at pace this summer & I was invited to submit observations

Campaigners have warned that nearly 600,000 disabled people could be at risk from the next round of the government’s welfare reforms. The figures relate to the DWP's plans to abolish the Work Capability Assessment (WCA). By me, for the Big Issue: www.bigissue.com/news/social-...