Justice & Home Affairs

The Ministry of Justice is at the forefront of the coalition’s moves towards both outsourcing of service provision, and payment by results – meaning that life isn’t always easy for its chief, Ursula Brennan. Matt Ross meets her

The Home Office has today been warned it must not repeat mistakes made at last November’s police and crime commissioner (PCC) election, such as delaying the release of crucial election rules, which contributed to a turnout of just 15 per cent.

In 2010, the Ministry of Justice outsourced its courts translation work – but the contractor struggled, and the system ground to a halt. As the probation outsourcing looms, Joshua Chambers looks at the lessons to be learned.

The Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ’s) outsourcing of court interpretation services has been “shambolic” and greatly harmed service quality, according to a report published today by the Commons’ Justice Committee

Sir Paul Jenkins

HM Procurator-General, Treasury Solicitor and Head of the Government Legal Service, Treasury Solicitor’s Department

Ursula Brennan

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice

Janice Hartley and Sue Moore started their roles as directors of delivery for Universal Credit at the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) on 5 November, replacing Steve Dover, the previous director of programme delivery. Hartley was previously the DWP’s interim service delivery director for corporate IT, and Moore was its fraud and error programme director. A DWP spokesperson told CSW the roles were not “direct replacements” for Dover because “the scope of the roles of senior staff has changed” as the project moves from the design to delivery phase.

Parliament’s Human Rights Committee (HRC) has criticised the government’s Justice and Security Bill over plans to extend the use of secret evidence in civil court cases.

Parliament’s Human Rights Committee (HRC) has criticised the government’s Justice and Security Bill over plans to extend the use of secret evidence in civil court cases.

As the Parliament’s halfway point looms, Tim Fish and Ben Willis examine the Cabinet Office’s progress against the tasks it was set in May 2010 as part of the Coalition’s Programme for Government.

The marathon effort to put on the greatest show in the world almost hit the skids when security firm G4S failed to deliver on its promises. Joshua Chambers explores the lessons for contract management and major projects

Brian Moore left his job as director general of the UK Border Force yesterday, having announced his departure at a Home Affairs Committee hearing in the morning. He has been succeeded on an interim basis by Tony Smith, a senior director at the UK Border Agency (UKBA) who was responsible for the delivery of its Olympic programme.

The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) is unlikely to meet its main performance and savings targets, says the National Audit Office (NAO).

Sir Alan Massey, chief executive of the Maritime Coastguard Agency (MCA), told the Scottish Affairs Committee yesterday that his reform programme won’t start to make savings until its fourth year.

The former chair of the Joint Intelligence Committee, Sir Richard Mottram, has come out against the idea that the Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) could hold public hearings with the heads of Britain’s intelligence agencies.

If only they’d do the same with elected police commissioners

The government’s online safety initiative, Get Safe Online, is to receive a further £400,000 of funding in a bid to improve the UK’s knowledge of cyber-security threats.

The Home Office must ensure that the UK Border Agency (UKBA) ditches its “bunker mentality” and starts to provide consistently accurate statistics to Parliament, the Commons Home Affairs Committee said in a report yesterday.

The government must provide a thorough response to last month’s final report from the Riots, Communities and Victims Panel, its chair Darra Singh has told CSW.

Andy Nelson is a busy man. The Ministry of Justice’s chief information officer, he’s also now replaced Joe Harley as the government’s overall head of IT. Becky Slack meets him to learn about his plans for two rather hefty jobs