Abstract: Now that the main British political parties are committed to the ideal of social justice, the political debate will focus on its meaning(s) and how – and through which institutions – it is best achieved. This article discusses key dimensions of social justice – conceptualised as distribution and recognition claims – with particular reference to poverty, inequality, disability and the perceived tension between diversity and solidarity in the welfare state. The second part provides an overview of a number of social justice issues below and above the (nation) state, moving from the domestic, through the neighbourhood, the devolved administrations and Europe, to the global.