There is a CHASE information session on 18 October (12:30-1:30): https://essex-university.zoom.us/j/98740276432 . This is aimed for PG students (e.g. those who will still have half their programme remaining in October 2024, PGT students, or people looking to apply for an Essex PhD). CHASE training enables doctoral students to enrich their research and professional skills in readiness ..read more

Elizabeth O’Loughlin (University of Durham), Cassandra Somers-Joce (King’s College, London and University of Oxford) and Gabriel Tan (University of Oxford and University of Durham) Introduction The duty of candour is the pre-eminent procedural duty that governs the evidence base in judicial reviews. It requires all parties to assist the court with full and accurate explanations ..read more

Koldo Casla and Lyle Barker (University of Essex) Creating a social security system that guarantees the essentials in life, regulating for-profit children’s homes, and extending peer-parent support are among a list of recommendations researchers believe could help to eradicate the “toxic culture” of England’s Child Protection Services. The call comes from the team behind Human Rights ..read more

Robert Thomas (Professor, University of Manchester) In 2021, the Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman published the report of its own-initiative investigation into Personal Independence Payments (PIP). It is a huge juggernaut of a report full of meticulously detailed case-studies, findings and recommendations about the administration of PIP in Northern Ireland (NI). The Ombudsman made an ..read more

Robert Thomas (Professor of Public Law, University of Manchester) What happens when the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) finds maladministration by central government, recommends a remedy, but this is then rejected by government? This a timely issue to consider. In 2022, the PHSO published the Earl report which made findings of maladministration and injustice ..read more

As Human Rights Watch’s 2020 global report on LGBT rights illustrates, LGBT people still face significant prejudice, discrimination, and even violent persecution around the world. For LGBT people able to flee, the right to seek asylum offers the hope of safety. But under the Government’s Illegal Migration Bill – which imposes a ban on seeking ..read more

Robert Thomas is a Professor of Public Law the University of Manchester One of the oldest issues with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) is the MP filter. People who want to complain to the PHSO about a government department or other public body must have their complaint referred to the ombudsman by an ..read more

By Jonathan Collinson (University of Huddersfield) The government has launched a consultation on the fees payable by applicants who lodge certain kinds of appeals in the Immigration and Asylum Chambers (IAC): the administrative tribunals responsible for hearing appeals against decisions of the Home Office in immigration and asylum matters. The consultation proposes fees – payable ..read more

By Robert Thomas (University of Manchester) Are the DWP’s reasons for rejecting the PHSO’s recommendations adequate and cogent? Following Part I, we now consider whether or not the DWP has provided adequate cogent reasons for not accepting the PHSO’s recommendations. It is necessary to be cautious in this respect. The DWP has presented its considered ..read more

By Robert Thomas (University of Manchester) In January 2022, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) published its report into the handling, by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), of the migration of a disability benefit claimant, Mrs U, to Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). More specifically, the key issues are: (a) whether the ..read more