Dear All
Welcome to the latest edition of the newsletter which brings you a selection of new sites added to SOSIG the Social Science Information Gateway in the last week. Remember that you can consult a full list at http://www.sosig.ac.uk/
In this week's edition



In the news this week

*       Race For Justice: A Review of CPS Decision Making For Possible Racial Bias at Each Stage of the Prosecution Process-

*       Congestion Charging 6 Months On 
*       Governmentfunding.org.uk 
*       Tackling Excessive Waiting Times for Elective Surgery: a Comparison of Policies in Twelve OECD Countries 
*       Scottish Council of Law Reporting 
*       IRA Statement on the Northern Ireland Peace Process October 2003 
*       Wales in a Regional Europe 
*       Police Performance Monitoring Reports For England and Wales 
*       Hearts and Minds: Post-War Civilian Deaths in Baghdad Caused by US Forces 

Racism in the Criminal Justice system

Race For Justice: A Review of CPS Decision Making For Possible Racial Bias at Each Stage of the Prosecution Process-
Description: This site provides access to a summary of the main findings of the review by Professor Gus John which was published in October 2003. It examined whether the British CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) was 'institutionally racist' against black and minority ethnic groups. Analysis is made of the conduct of police services, court services and the criminal justice system. Users should note that the paper is in pdf format and therefore requires access to an Adobe Acrobat Reader for use. 

URL: http://www.cps.gov.uk/Home/CPSPublications/docs/racejustice.pdf 

also available:
Stephen Lawrence Home secretary Action plans, Virdi Enquiry Report , Winning the race: embracing diversity consolidation inspection of police community and race relations (2001) , Winning the Race: Policing Plural Communities Revisited (1999) ; Career Progression Of Ethnic Minority Officers by Nick Bland et.al. (1999) 

Congestion Charging 6 Months On 
Description: This site provides access to the full text of a report issued by Transport for London in October 2003. It summarises the initial impact of congestion charging which was introduced in central London in February 2003. Topics covered include: the operation of the scheme during its first six months of implementation, the impact on traffic and journey times in London, the administration of the scheme and statistics on the revenue collected. Users should note that the paper is in pdf format and therefore requires access to an Adobe Acrobat Reader for use 

URL: http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl/downloads/pdf/congestion-charging/cc-6monthson.pdf 
also added Impacts of Road User Charging / Workplace Parking on Social Inclusion/ Exclusion: Gender, Ethnicity and Lifecycle Issues Transport Studies Research

see also transport economics section http://www.sosig.ac.uk/roads/subject-listing/World-cat/trans.html
Governmentfunding.org.uk 
Description: This is an official portal which provides information on grants and funding offered to charities, non-governmental organisations and the voluntary sector by a number of Uk government departments. It includes an up to date list of grant sources and programmes with online application forms. Also accessible is advice on how to obtain funding and a list of suppliers. Users may register to receive updates when new funding becomes available. 

URL: http://www.governmentfunding.org.uk 
Tackling Excessive Waiting Times for Elective Surgery: a Comparison of Policies in Twelve OECD Countries 
Author: Siciliani, L; Hurst, Jeremy
Description: This site provides access to OECD Health working paper 2003 no.6 by Jeremy Hurst and Luigi Siciliani which was published in October 2003. It provides access to statistics on waiting lists for non-elective (non-urgent) operations in 12 OECD countries: Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the Uk. It then discusses health policy in these nations, the determinants of the waiting list times and efforts made by individual health services to reduce them. Users should note that the 

URL: http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/24/32/5162353.pdf 
Scottish Council of Law Reporting 
Alternative Title: SCLR
Description: Web site of the Scottish Council of Law Reporting a non- profit company made up of Scottish judges, advocates and solicitors whose purpose is to manage the publication of its Session Cases law report series and other materials. The site gives information about the availability of the Sessions Cases and Faculty Digest which can be accessed online and in hard copy. The site also provides a page of legal links compiled by advocate, Derek O'Carroll. The resources have an emphasis on Scottish law and are organised by subject including consumer law, human rights, legislation, personal injury, environmental law and taxation. A selection of reports of the most important Scottish cases taken from the Session Cases archive is also provided along with additional materials including scanned images of case documents. 

URL: http://www.scottishlawreports.org.uk/home.html 
IRA Statement on the Northern Ireland Peace Process October 2003 
Description: This site contains the full text of a brief but groundbreaking statement made by the IRA on the 21st October 2003. In it they pledge their support for the Northern Ireland peace process and express agreement with the position of Gerry Adams and Sinn Fein concerning the decommissioning of arms. The press release is made available on the Sinn Fein web site. 

URL: http://www.sinnfein.ie/news/detail/1761 

see our section on Northern Ireland at: http://www.sosig.ac.uk/roads/subject-listing/World-cat/devni.html
Wales in a Regional Europe 
Description: Wales in a Regional Europe is a research institute based at the University of Wales Aberystwyth. It was formed in late 2003 from the Jean Monet Centre for European Studies and the Institute for Welsh Politics with the aim of studying the position of Wales within a regional Europe. Topics of concern include: welsh elections and political parties and the broader topic of regional issues in Europe. Its web site will provide information on the aims of the body, its members and ongoing work. Press releases and details of publications will appear on the site. 
 
URL: http://www.aber.ac.uk/interpol/wire/ 
Police Performance Monitoring Reports For England and Wales 
This site provides access to a collection of official reports by the Home Office which monitor the performance of individual police forces in England and Wales. Areas covered by these include: success in reducing crime rates, clear up rates, crime investigation, use of resources and police community relations. Links are provided to other Home Office documents which outline the methodology used to produce the reports. Users should note that they are in pdf format and therefore require access to an Adobe Acrobat Reader for use. 

URL: http://www.policereform.gov.uk/docs/performancemonitors7.html 
Hearts and Minds: Post-War Civilian Deaths in Baghdad Caused by US Forces 
Description: This site provides access to the full text of a report published in October 2003 by Human Rights Watch. It presents statistics and case studies of civilian deaths arising from the actions of American armed forces in Iraq in the aftermath of the 2003 Iraq war. Also considered is the accountability of the Coalition forces. Recommendations for future action are made. Users should note that the report is in pdf format and therefore requires access to an Adobe Acrobat Reader for use. 

URL: http://www.hrw.org/reports/2003/iraq1003/ 

also added Wages of War Iraqi Combatant and non combatant casualties Commonwealth Institute project on defense alternatives.
if you have any comments on this newsletter please contact Heather Dawson
SOSIG Government and Politics Editor
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