This themed section arose partly as a response to the debate, which has been taking place within the academic social policy community recently, about the nature and future of social policy as an area of study. It includes contributions from those working within Politics departments, both in Britain and abroad, as well as from those working within more specific Social Policy contexts. There are many reasons why the Political Economy approach to social policy is particularly appropriate today. Three important reasons are the increasing importance of processes of ‘globalisation’, the ever more explicit linking of economic and social policies by governments, and the entry of new actors such as for-profit corporations into the domain of social policy.