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CSJ - Manifesto week: is this the social justice election?

A former medical acquaintance used to joke that the most sensitive nerve in the body is the pocket nerve. People feel policy in their wallet.

The same is true of manifestos. It’s why you’ll have read a lot this week about tax, pensions, and funding – who’s costed their plans, who’s pumping money where, and who’s going to raise taxes by how much. Papers need readers and they know that readers respond hardest to a kick in the pocket nerve.

But if you delve deeper into the manifestos, there is a social justice agenda present in all three major parties. There are policies that will not only help the pockets but the lives of those people that need it most.

For this week’s leader column, we thought it would be useful to highlight some of what each party has said in relation to the five pathways which we know to be the key drivers of poverty, as well as some other key areas we have focused on.

We have come a long way in driving Government to go after the root causes of poverty, and it’s exciting for us to see just how much impact a small organisation can have when it speaks out for those that need help. But there is still much work to be done. And we’re excited to be doing it in the months and years ahead.

Work: The three main parties have some obvious and fundamental philosophical differences in the world of employment, but the CSJ was pleased to see they were unified by a commitment to life-long learning and, in particular, the rollout of Universal Credit – a central plank in our organisation’s legacy. The Labour manifesto also echoed the CSJ’s call to strengthen the Universal Credit Work Allowances and the Conservative manifesto adopted the calls of our recent disability report to see 1 million more people in work, tailored employment support and greater incentives for employers to offer support.

Debt: Serious personal debt ruins lives and it is something the CSJ has fought tirelessly against. All three major parties acknowledge this in their manifestos and both Labour and Conservative parties commit to the CSJ recommendation of some form of statutory ‘Breathing Space’, by which people receive a time limited repayment amnesty with certain conditions attached. It was the central theme of our recent report – Creating a Society Free of Personal Debt.

Family: None of the three major parties placed policies to strengthen families at the centre of their social policy plans. However, there is cross-party movement on paternity leave and the Liberal Democrats include the CSJ recommendation for a government funded online parenting service through a new Family University. At the top of the Conservative Party manifesto there is a recognition that supporting families is still a Conservative ‘principle’, but there is still more work to be done to ensure it finds its way into policy.

Education: It is encouraging that each major party has pledged to revitalise technical education in the UK, a recent focus of our education work. With the Conservative’s planned T Level qualification, and Labour’s commitment to better quality technical apprenticeships, any incoming government will provide much needed momentum on this. We have also outlined how selective education could be used as a vehicle for social mobility if sufficiently targeted, and are pleased to see the Conservative Party’s commitment to adopting a conditional approach to the expansion of selective education.

Addiction: The number of registered deaths related to drug misuse is at its highest level since records began in 1993. Yet neither the Conservatives nor Labour have made recovery from addiction a priority in their manifesto pledges. Indeed, the Liberal Democrats have even pledged to make cannabis more readily available through its legalisation. This, we firmly believe, would be a mistake.

Homelessness: All three parties have adopted the CSJ commitment to end rough sleeping by various means and timeframes. In addition, we were thrilled to see the Liberal Democrat and Conservative manifestos explicitly commit to a roll-out of Housing First for the chronically homeless with complex needs –  this was the title and central recommendation of our recent report on homelessness.

Criminal Justice: The shared language of prison reform and rehabilitation across Conservative, Labour and Lib Dem manifestos builds on long-standing CSJ recommendations that prisons become safe environments that protect the public while enabling rehabilitation and reform by tackling the root causes of offending. There is continued emphasis on the need for more effective community sentences from all three main parties, echoing our own calls for overhauled community sentences built on swift and certain principles.

On June 8th many of these promises will become government policy. Over the next year we will be making sure they are driven home on behalf of the people that need them.

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