PLP to work on ESRC-funded project on algorithmic politics, administrative justice and Brexit

PLP is soon to begin work as a research partner on a new ESRC (Economic and Social Research Council) funded project, ‘Algorithmic Politics and Administrative Justice in the EU Settlement Scheme’. The project, which is being led by researchers at the University of Exeter, aims to: ‘analyse the process of administrative reform associated with Brexit, and the intersection of this process with the digitalisation of administration and governance in the UK’.

PLP will be contributing its expertise on the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) to the research alongside the3million, which is also acting as a research partner for the project. It is hoped the research will make an important contribution to understanding how the implementation of the EUSS can shed light on the interaction between automated algorithmic systems and rights-based practices of monitoring, advocacy and litigation within practices of administrative justice.

The research is being led by Professor Clive Barnett, Dr Sam Kinsley and Dr Kuba Jablonowski from the department of Geography at the University of Exeter. It is funded by the ESRC’s Governance after Brexit programme, as part of the UK in a Changing Europe (UKICE) initiative.

PLP has recently published a paper on algorithmic discrimination in government decision-making and continues its work in the area of public law and technology, as well as Brexit. Through its casework, PLP provides specialist support to frontline organisations that assist vulnerable and disadvantaged applicants to the EUSS.

By acting as a research partner PLP will be able to contribute its expertise to an important area of cutting-edge research on how post-Brexit administrative decision-making develops in relation to the increasing digitalisation of governance. PLP will be actively involved in the design of the research, in the generation of key sources of data, and in helping to design dissemination and engagement strategies.

Dr Joe Tomlinson, Research Director at PLP, sits on the advisory panel for the project. He said: “This is an exciting opportunity for PLP to play a key role in the development of academic research in this area. We already work closely with our colleagues at the University of Exeter on a number of issues and look forward to strengthening these ties by collaborating on this research.”