Westminster in recess: Your end of term parliamentary briefing from BASW
Spring Statement
What is usually regarded as a more muted affair in comparison to the Autumn Budget was anything but when the Chancellor gave her update on the UK economy in the House of Commons last month.
On the backdrop of stagnant fiscal growth, the government decided to announce more measures than they would have wanted ahead of their Spending Review in June. Among the announcements was major changes and cuts to the welfare system and foreign aid spending, both aiming to make significant savings, as increased spending on the defence budget was confirmed.
BASW made representations to the Treasury for the Spending Review, where we pressed upon officials the severity of not spending now to reduce demand on statutory services. Our evidence called for stronger measures to tackle poverty, a laser focus on addressing the funding shortfalls in social care, investment to fix deepening workforce recruitment and retention challenges in social work, spending on prevention in mental health, and a long-term funding settlement for local authorities.
Since the cuts to welfare have been proposed, we intend to respond to the government's consultation where we will be advocating for those on the lowest incomes to be protected. We have also written to Ministers to seek assurances that spending on overseas aid spending will be lifted in this parliament.
Assisted Dying
Following an historic vote in the commons in November, a committee of MPs have been closely examining and amending Kim Leadbeater’s private member’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill which would legalise assisted dying for terminally ill adults in England and Wales.
The biggest change made so far has been the removal of the high court judge for assessing applications for an assisted death, which has been replaced with a multi-disciplinary review panel comprising a senior legal professional, a psychiatrist and a social worker.
BASW made the case for a multi-disciplinary approach in our evidence to MPs, so we welcomed this development. Although we have continued to argue that more investment will be needed to ensure the panels are well resourced to meet demand.
Another key lobbying win for BASW was securing a commitment from Ms Leadbeater during a committee session that legal protections currently only afforded to medical professionals will be extended to social workers, so no professional is legally obligated to be involved. Watch the moment it happened in parliament here.
The legislation will face a crucial vote from all MPs on 16 May, which will determine whether it continues to its final commons stage before proceeding to the House of Lords. Given that it’s not a government bill, there is no guarantees it will pass.
Mental Health
The government’s proposed reforms to the Mental Health Act for England and Wales have almost finished their scrutiny in the House of Lords following a series of lengthy debates since January.
BASW, ADASS and the AMHP Leads Network have jointly led efforts to engage with Peers on the proposals. While we broadly welcome the Bill, we have been putting forward specific amendments to strengthen it.
Our main concern is that the legislation is not focused enough on prevention. An amendment we suggested for duty to promote good mental wellbeing was raised at committee stage, which we hope will return in the commons. We have also supported amendments around improving the process for appointing nominated persons for under-18s, provision of treatment for a mental disorder as a public function and removing the requirement for the nominated person’s signature to be witnessed.
However, we were concerned to see an amendment tabled by the Conservatives to extend S135/136 powers passed by the Lords, and in partnership with the AMHP Leads Network are calling on the government to repeal this change in the Commons.
Asylum & Immigration
‘Smash the gangs’ was Keir Starmer’s line on asylum and immigration before last year’s election as he promised to deliver new counter-terrorism style powers for law enforcement agencies against smuggling gangs.
The Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill was introduced to parliament by the Home Secretary in February. As well as creating a string of enhanced powers and new offences, the Bill will repeal the previous government’s controversial Rwanda Scheme and large swathes of the Illegal Migration Act.
BASW is advocating to MPs for two main changes to the Bill – a full age assessment to be carried out by a social worker at the point of arrest and detention if the individual claims to be a child, and the abolishment of the National Age Assessment Board (NAAB) and use of scientific methods of age assessment.
Our campaigning is being recognised by opposition MPs, resulting in an amendment to scrap the NAAB and scientific methods being driven forward by the Liberal Democrats. A date is still to be set for the vote on the amendment (likely to be end of April or early May) but we are already asking social workers to contact their MP to urge them to support it.
Children’s Social Care
The government wants to make changes to child protection and education in England, including around school reform and safeguarding measures, which they are hoping to achieve through their Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. These areas are devolved in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Thanks to BASW England’s engagement with MPs on this Bill, the Liberal Democrats agreed to quiz the Education Minister during a committee session on the Bill about what the government is doing to address workforce retention challenges in children's social work, including on pay, conditions, flexible working and training and development opportunities. Read the exchange here.
We’re also continuing to call on the government to prioritise investment in social work by delivering a fully resourced programme of professional development and to honour the £2.6 billion funding recommended by the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care, alongside urgent measures to reduce reliance on profit-making providers and empower social workers to deliver the stability and care children need to thrive.
The Bill has now passed through the commons stages and will begin being considered by the House of Lords in early May.
Housing
The government is aiming to reform the private rental sector for tenants in England by providing them with greater security through the Renter’s Rights Bill. Among other measures, the legislation will end Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions, limit rent increases and ensure all rental properties meet minimum quality standards. Housing is devolved in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Bill is currently being considered by the House of Lords before it will return to the Commons for MPs to give final approval. BASW has also welcomed the announcement of new grant funding of £2billion as part of the government’s long-term plans to build 1.5million new social homes to help tackle the housing crisis.
Looking Ahead
Parliament returns from Easter recess on 22nd April. The government will then be hoping to get most of their Bills mentioned above passed by the time parliament breaks for summer on 22nd July.
Their consultation on proposed welfare changes runs until end of June, so it is unlikely that they will bring forward legislation in this area until the autumn.
June 11th will be a particularly important date in the parliamentary calendar as it’s when the Chancellor will publish the Spending Review. This will outline funding allocated to government departments for future years, including health and social care.
We are also expecting the government to publish its long-awaited child poverty strategy sometime in the spring and the independent commission, led by Baroness Casey, tasked to put forward a roadmap for social care reform in England should also begin its first phase work this month.
Finally, the government has recently confirmed that they still intend to bring forward a Hillsborough Law, which would create a new legal duty of candour on public authorities and officials, in the near future. Although it won’t be before the anniversary of the Hillsborough Disaster on 14th April as was initially expected.
Stay Updated
Follow all BASW’s UK parliamentary work with our ‘This Week in Westminster’ blog series or through regular updates on our social media channels. You can also follow our activity on individual campaigns on our campaigning and influencing webpage.
We always welcome feedback and views from members on any issues raised in parliament which cut across social work interests and stand to impact upon the profession and people we support. Your insights and expertise help to drive our influencing and engagement work with policy-makers. Please contact our Political & Public Affairs Lead on jonny.adamson@basw.co.uk
