There was a time, not so very long ago, when policies could be understood as instrumental attempts, influenced no doubt by ideology, at practical problem solving. Recently, however, it has frequently been more to the point to see policies as expressions of ideology which create as many (if not more) problems than they solve. The habitual residence test, which restricts eligibility for income support, housing benefit and council tax benefit to those who are deemed to be ‘habitually resident’ in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man, is a case in point not least because it embodies no less than three components of Conservative Party ideology: scepticism towards Europe, disdain for the so-called ‘dependency culture’ and enthusiasm for further public expenditure cuts.