Labour in government: 365 days later
“Resource social care, tackle poverty and work with us to make urgent change”.
That was our firm and clear message to Keir Starmer on 5 July 2024, the day he became the UK’s 58th Prime Minister.
Despite an election result that returned a thumping majority of Labour MPs to the green benches at Westminster, he would have been under no illusions of the task ahead of him. The country was desperately craving change. The type that made their communities stronger, their public services healthier, and their lives better
Saying this in an election campaign is one thing, delivering it is another. The reality of government is that it is a hard slog. And this administration’s first year at the helm of British politics has been thwart with challenges. Some expected, others less so.
From deepening global instability and insecurity to fiscal uncertainty and pressure on public finances, to the political rise of Reform and growing discontent on the backbenches, there has been much for the Prime Minister and his cabinet to contend with since taking office. Regardless, the expectation for delivery remains high, as are the stakes.
When we set out our manifesto last year, we insisted that it was ‘Time to get it Right’. So, one year in, are the government so far getting it right? Let’s take a closer look.
BASW’s Key Asks
Our manifesto put forward 40 asks for MPs in this parliament, with five ‘priority’ areas which we felt were essential for the government to deliver on.
There is widespread consensus among anti-poverty groups that scrapping these cruel policies would be the single most effective measure the government could enact to lift children and families out of poverty. BASW wrote to the government in their first weeks in office to make this point.
The Prime Minister said he will ‘leave no stone unturned’ to drive down child poverty levels, and has committed to publishing a Child Poverty Strategy, initially expected in Spring 2025 but now reportedly delayed until the autumn.
Will his strategy include scrapping the two-child limit and benefit cap? That remains to be seen. For now though, there has been no movement on this issue.
Since its introduction by the previous government in 2023, BASW has condemned and opposed this legislation. It actively prevents the UK from having a safe, fair and human asylum system.
The current government is seeking to repeal large swathes of the Act through its Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, which is welcome. Similarly, on his first day as Prime Minister, Keir Starmer scrapped the controversial Rwanda Scheme.
The amount that social workers can claim back for using their car for work purposes has remained unchanged since 2011. This is despite the sharp increase in the cost of living since then.
BASW argued this point to the Treasury ahead of the recent Spending Review, but unfortunately there has been no movement yet from the government to raise the allowance. It is a campaign that we need to keep pushing with Ministers in this parliament.
The current Mental Health Act is wildly outdated, and it was disappointing that the previous government stopped short of bringing in a new Act, despite carrying out the pre-legislative scrutiny.
Thankfully, the current government picked up the mantle very quickly on this one, introducing a Bill in November that is currently approaching its final stages in parliament. The implementation period will take up to ten years, hence why we are pleased that Ministers haven’t wasted time in moving it through parliament.
BASW and ADASS have engaged with Ministers at every stage, as we sought to strengthen the legislation.
Westminster is only responsible for legislating on bursary support for social work students in England, given that social work and higher education are devolved. BASW’s manifesto called for fairer and more accessible financial support for social work students in England, since funding has been frozen for almost ten years.
Again, this was a case BASW made to Ministers in advance of the Spending Review, although the government has so far not agreed to reform. In Scotland, SASW has had more success with their campaign, as the Scottish Government has recently announced a 50% increase for postgraduate bursaries. A similar campaign is also underway in Northern Ireland.
BASW’s Wider Asks
- Adult and Children’s Social Care (England only)
The government will argue that the funding announced in the Spending Review meets the £2.6 billion target recommended in the Independent Review for Children’s Social Care. However, this is debatable, given that the Chancellor said the funding for children’s social care is over a six year period, while the review’s target was based on a four year delivery.
The government has set up a commission into adult social care reform, led by Baroness Casey. It has already come under criticism though given that the review is not intended to finish until 2028, which many in the sector believe does not reflect the urgency of the crisis in adult social care that desperately needs to be addressed.
- Working conditions (England only)
BASW managed to get a number of parliamentary questions tabled to the Department for Health and Social Care seeking clarity on the government’s plans to improve working conditions for social workers. Unfortunately, they confirmed that there were no plans to introduce a national social work recruitment campaign or a social work specific national workforce strategy. We therefore need to keep making the case to Ministers on why these measures are needed.
- National Age Assessment Board (NAAB)
The government has remained steadfast in their support for keeping the NAAB, despite strong campaigning from BASW and others for it to be shelved, including proposing amendments to the Immigration Bill to repeal it. For the moment though, it seems unlikely that Ministers will budge on this, but things can always change!
- Liberty Protection Safeguards (England and Wales)
During the Mental Health Bill’s passage, the government has signalled that it has no plans to implement Liberty Protection Safeguards. BASW and ADASS have therefore jointly written to the Department for Health and Social Care seeking clarity and calling on them to reconsider if indeed they are thinking of scrapping it.
- Housing (England only)
The Chancellor announced funding at the Spending Review to help the government meet its long-term target of building 1.5million new social and affordable homes to tackle the housing crisis. They are also introducing a Renter’s Rights Bill to give greater security to tenants renting in the private sector, including a ban no fault evictions.
- Foreign aid spending
Regrettably, the Chancellor announced ahead of the Spring Statement that the government is slashing the foreign aid spending budget to 0.3% GDP, so we’re now even further away from the 0.7% that BASW is campaigning for. BASW wrote to the government in March seeking assurances that they will still aim to meet the 0.7% target in this parliament.
- Duty of Candour
The Prime Minister had committed to introducing a Hillsborough Law, which would place a legal duty of candour on public servants and authorities, before this year’s anniversary of the Hillsborough Disaster. However, this commitment was not met, and we are still waiting on the government bringing forward this Bill.
You can read BASW’s full manifesto here.
Looking Ahead
Even at a year in, the government is already at a pivotal juncture. They aren’t polling well and, even though they have a large parliamentary majority, the seats they hold are far from safe. Labour will be hoping that in the next 12 months they can point to half a dozen or so major policy achievements. Not least, to give them a boost in the devolved elections in Scotland and Wales taking place in May, where opposition parties will be determined to give them a bloody nose.
Interested in following our parliamentary work? We report on all our activity at Westminster in our 'This Week in Westminster' blog series.
