Citation

Bennett J. Howard J. Crim. Just. 2008; 47(5): 451-469.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, Howard League for Penal Reform, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1468-2311.2008.00537.x

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Abstract: After ten years of Labour government, their penal policies have been extensively examined and reviewed. Recent months have seen the resurgence in popularity of the Conservative Party, but their penal policies have not been the subject of critical analysis. This article aims to provide such a review of Conservative Party policy. It explores the published statements and documents produced on penal policy and identifies that rather than presenting a new approach, the policies mix neo‐conservative or New Right economic policies from the 1980s including the creation of a small State with marketised public services and promoting punitive criminal justice policies that have been staples of the party for more than a decade, with the deployment of neo‐liberal strategies in the social field, particularly responsibilisation. The article argues that whilst there is some mixing and matching of policies and strategies, there is an underlying neo‐conservative ideology. The social consequences of Cameron's policies are discussed, including the expansion of the criminal justice and penal system, the redefinition of the socially excluded as the ‘undeserving poor’ and the creation of a minimalist State.