The drawing powers and attractiveness of the welfare state are government-protected minimum standards of income, health, security, housing, and education. The British welfare state has been enmeshed in multifaceted crises including poverty, racism, lack of coherence, and a smattering of social and political infrastructure. The Westminster thank tank for public services reforms has judged degenerating and decaying health of the British state from the discontenting facts and certitudes of depressed disconsolate feelings of British citizens: “Many of those losing their jobs will be shocked to find just how bare bones the welfare state is. For those earning even the median salary, benefit rates appear woefully inadequate, providing no buffer to allow for an adjustment of outgoings or time to find a comparable job”. These challenges have debilitated and infirmed communication of the state on international forums, and incapacitated its domestic enforcement capabilities. After the COVID-19 and African Omicron virus’s well-built attacks, and its disaffiliation with the EU, the state is facing economic and political challenges. The Labour government had failed in yesteryears, to address mistrust between government and communities, while correspondingly, and for that reason, the conservative government continued to affix its footprints to goof up and blunders. Contents Introduction Chapter 1 The United Kingdom in Danger of Becoming a Failed State Chapter 2 Domestic Governance, Intelligence Diversity, and Surveillance Chapter 3 Facial Recognition Technology, Biological Terrorism and Mass Surveillance Chapter 4 Forget James Bond: Diversity, Inclusion and the UK’s Intelligence Agencies Daniel W. B. Lomas Chapter 5 Executive Accountability and National Security Lorna Woods OBE, Lawrence McNamara, Judith Townend Chapter 6 Scottish Independence after Brexit Eve Hepburn, Michael Keating and Nicola McEwen Chapter 7 Contesting Sovereignty and Borders: Northern Ireland, Devolution and the Union Mary C. Murphy & Jonathan Evershed Chapter 8 Governing ‘Levelling-Up’ in the UK: Challenges and Prospects John Connolly, Robert Pyper & Arno van der Zwet Chapter 9 Staying “One Step Ahead of a Racist”: Expanding Understandings of the Experiences of the Covid-19 Pandemic among People from Minoritized Ethnic Groups Living in Britain Saffron Karlsen and Rosie Nelson Notes to Chapters Index