A toxic combination of rising demand, constrained resources, misguided reform, the covid-19 pandemic and UK Government cuts have left the country’s public services crumbling, according to a think-tank.
An election government is likely in spring or autumn 2024; whichever political party takes power, it will inherit one of the most challenging contexts of any government since the Second World War, according to the IPPR (Institute for Public Policy Research) which says that it will take until 2033 for court backlogs to reduce to pre-pandemic levels. Polling for the think-tank suggests that a majority of the UK believes many public services are getting worse.
The think-tank recommends a pivot on public spending to focus on prevention and a long-term social return, such as investment in social care, and community policing.
Harry Quilter-Pinner, director at IPPR, said: “Additional spending will be needed to address this problem. But money alone will not be able to fix the problems in our hospitals, schools and courts. The next government will need an ambitious, long-term, modern reform agenda.”
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Penelope Gibbs, director at Transform Justice, said: “IPPR identifies the need to devolve power across the board. Only through devolving power will we make services such as criminal justice focus on what communities need. Through localisation of power and budgets a future good government will be able to shift the balance of spending away from prisons, towards community solutions.”
Meanwhile His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has raised ‘serious concerns’ about the performance of West Midlands Police (WMP), and has placed the force under an ‘enhanced monitoring process’. After an inspection, HMIC said it recognised that the West Midlands has high levels of deprivation; and that West Midlands Police’s funding had been disproportionately affected compared to some other forces. HMIC rated as inadequate how WMP investigates crime, protects vulnerable people and manages offenders and suspects.
Photo by Mark Rowe: Shrewsbury Prison wall.
