Abstract
This paper presents a comparative analysis of two reports by the UN Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights, one for Spain and one for the UK. In both countries, austerity policies were introduced following the banking crisis of 2008. The UN Rapporteur reports highlight the damage that was done by welfare retrenchment. In particular, the reports document the impact of austerity on the most vulnerable individuals and communities. The paper uses Somers' (2008) conceptual model of citizenship as the basis for a comparative analysis of two reports. Somers' (2008) model of citizenship is a triadic one which sees the state, market and civil society as competing elements. Each one can serve to regulate and limit the influence or excesses of the other two. Somers argues that neoliberalism has seen the dominance of the market at the expense of the role of the state and the institutions of civil society. Austerity policies saw the market dominating. Having examined the context of the two reports and their conclusions, the paper discussed the implications for individual social workers’ practice and the role of social work as a profession in tackling poverty and marginalisation.
Highlights
The United Kingdom (UK) and Spain are signatories of the major international human rights treaties including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the two international covenants: The Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (CPR) and The Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ESCR)
The United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights carries out visits to countries and investigates the impact of government economic, social and welfare policies
The visits followed critical concluding observations on the failure of both countries to protect economic, social and cultural rights after both countries had been examined by the ESCR committee the UK in 2016 and Spain in 2018
Summary
The United Kingdom (UK) and Spain are signatories of the major international human rights treaties including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the two international covenants: The Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (CPR) and The Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ESCR). The United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights carries out visits to countries and investigates the impact of government economic, social and welfare policies. The sixth periodic report issued in May 2018, when supposedly the country had overcome the crisis, acknowledged the profound impact that the international financial crisis has had on the economy and on the effective enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights.
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