Damaged politics sees voter trust at record low

Trust and confidence in the UK’s politics and election system has never been worse, according to analysis by the electoral expert, Sir John Curtice.

His report for the National Centre for Social Research finds record numbers of voters saying they “almost never” trust governments to put country before party or politicians to tell the truth when in a tight corner.

“The public is as doubtful as it has ever been about the trustworthiness and efficacy of the country’s system of government and the people who comprise it,” Sir John says.

The report suggests disillusionment over Brexit among leave voters is one of the main reasons for the collapse in trust.

Political scandal and the cost-of-living crisis are also to blame, according to the report.

“Those struggling financially are particularly disenchanted with the state of government and politics in Britain,” Sir John explains.

The report, entitled ‘Damaged Politics’, finds 45% of voters would “almost never” trust the government to put country before party - the highest proportion ever.

Almost six in ten (58%) would “almost never” trust politicians to tell the truth when in a tight corner and eight out of ten voters (79%) say Britain’s system of governance needs to be improved “quite a lot” or “a great deal”.

Asked if they favoured a voting system that was fairer to smaller parties, 53% agreed, the highest proportion ever to question first-past-the-post elections.

The BBC’s Your Voice Your Vote has had many comments on the lack of confidence in politics and politicians.

Tony Martin from Hull asks: “When can we trust politicians of all parties to tell the truth however unpalatable? Stop treating us like idiots!”

Tina from Bristol says she won’t be voting because “all parties argue and shout at one another… then when they get voted in. They don’t do what they promise.”

For Abbie, 36, from Kent, the biggest issue is restoring trust in politics: “Many voters just believe all the parties are the same,” she wrote.

Juozas, 22, wants politicians to address the decline of trust in institutions: “Repeatedly seeing scandals addressed years after they’ve happened makes me feel decision makers can dodge accountability…

“If feels like every time a scandal is uncovered accountability has to be imposed through relentless public pressure, rather than through the rule of law,” he wrote.

Geoff Telfer from Yorkshire wrote in to say that the most important issue to him was “the voting system in which approximately half the population is disenfranchised, an obvious result of first-past-the-post”.

“Some form of proportional representation is desperately called for, resulting in consensus policies and fairer representation,” Mr Telfer added.

Olivia, 19, from Ilkeston said many of her friends feel “in political limbo” with no choice “other than to vote to the lesser of two evils”.

Christopher Jerr-Delworth from West Yorkshire concurred: “The issue that concerns me most of all is that our electoral system is so flawed that we end up with governments that command the support of less than a quarter of the electorate,” he wrote.

Half of voters sampled in England (49%) said they favoured more devolution to regional authorities or an English parliament.

Sir John believes the findings represent a real challenge for whoever wins the election.

“It is likely to require a style and manner of governing that persuades people that the government has their interests at heart after all,” he says.