Law in a Complex State: Complexity in the Law and Structure of Welfare

(Paperback)

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Approximately half of the total UK population are in receipt of one or more welfare benefits, giving rise to the largest single area of government expenditure. The law and structures of social security are highly complex, made more so by constant adjustments as government pursues its often conflicting economic, political and social policy objectives. This complexity is highly problematic. It contributes to errors in decision-making and to increased administrative costs and is seen as disempowering for citizens, thereby weakening enjoyment of a key social right. Current and previous administrations have committed to simplifying the benefits system. It is a specific objective of the Welfare Reform Act 2012, which provides for the introduction of Universal Credit in place of diverse benefits. However, it is unclear whether the reformed system will be either less complex legally or more accessible for citizens. This book seeks to explain how and why complexity in the modern welfare system has grown; to identify the different ways in which legal and associated administrative arrangements are classifiable as 'complex'; to discuss the effects of complexity on the system's administration and its wider implications for rights and the citizen-state relationship; and to consider the role that law can play in the simplification of schemes of welfare. While primarily focused on the UK welfare system it also provides analysis of relevant policies and experience in various other states.

Reviews

In this extremely welcome and timely study, and providing numerous illustrative and pertinent examples, Professor Neville Harris uses the prism of welfare legislation (a sometimes neglected field of law) to embark on a denouement of the idea of complexity, forensically examining the concept in its component parts, and demonstrating that far from being attributable to one overall conceptual or practical legal, administrative or judicial factor, complexity is rather a multi-layered amalgam of all of these The analysis itself brings some clarity to the definition of complexity, its existence in the UK welfare system, and a rationale for its presence. Timely and interesting, the central threads of the analysis may usefully be applied to other areas of law beset by the same complexity. -- Dr Philip M. Larkin * Journal of Social Security Law, Issue 2, 2014 *
Neville Harriss book is a masterwork[it] is well researched, authoritative, and, surprisingly given the subject matter, very readable. It explains why complexity matters and what might be done to improve matters. It should be of interest to anyone who is involved in the design of social security rules, policy makers, welfare law practitioners as well as academics with an interest in legal philosophy or legal methodology. -- Neil Bateman * Public Law, April 2015 *

Author Bio

Neville Harris is a Professor of Law at the University of Manchester.