Payment by results: the materialist reconstruction of criminal justice

Abstract

Purpose

The criminal justice system in England and Wales is being reconstructed on a new operating platform of which Payment by Results (PbR) is the material signifier. This critical historic transformation is occurring during a period of radical economic disruption and political restructuring after 2007-2008. PbR signals the deeper penetration of the core principles of capitalism into the body of the state and its welfare and criminal justice system. Conceptually a Lacanian-Žižekian framework is put to work to theorise these important transformations. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The design and methodology of this research paper utilises open sources and documentary materials on the development of PbR, in its application primarily to the criminal justice system.

Findings

There is evidence that PbR, located within the wider context of capitalist reconstruction, is radically transforming the delivery of criminal justice services.

Originality/value

This is the first critical analysis of PbR located within the context of late modern capitalism.

Citation

Whitehead, P. (2015), "Payment by results: the materialist reconstruction of criminal justice", International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, Vol. 35 No. 5/6, pp. 290-305. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSSP-10-2013-0100