Dissatisfaction with the UK Government

 Public trust and confidence in government and politicians is at a record low, fuelled by anger over Partygate, perceived broken promises over Brexit [British exit from Europe] and crumbling public services, according to the latest British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey...

"All in all, it appears that people's trust in governments and politicians, and confidence in their systems of government, is as low now as it has ever been over the last 50 years, if not lower," the survey said.

Dissatisfaction with the way the UK is governed is now at 79%... Nearly half (48%) of leave voters [Leaving the European Union] now say they "almost never" trust government to put the needs of the country above their party, up 23 points since 2020. Levels of distrust among remain voters have also risen to 42%, up 16 points since 2020.

The behaviour of politicians has also been a factor, with revelations that the former prime minister Boris Johnson and his Downing Street colleagues had contravened Covid rules during the pandemic likely to have had a "corrosive effect" on public trust, the survey said.

Feast of Fools
Frans Floris the elder (c. 1507-1570)
Photo Credit: Shakespeare Birthplace Trust [CC BY-NC-ND]

Asked whether they trusted politicians to "tell the truth in a tight corner", 58% of respondents said almost never, up 19 points from 2020...

Professor Sir John Curtice, a senior research fellow at the National Centre for Social Research (Natcen), said: "The next government will not simply face the challenge of reviving Britain's stuttering economy and its struggling public services. It will also need to address the concerns of a public that is as doubtful as it has ever been about the trustworthiness and efficacy of the country's system of government."

He added: "Addressing some of the policy challenges will help in that endeavour. However, it is likely to require much more than that - in particular, a style and manner of governing that persuades people that the government has their interests at heart after all.

(Patrick Butler, The Guardian, 2024)

Why is it very noticeable, in some television interviews with politicians, how they refuse to answer the questions put to them? This only seems to make them shifty and to come across as individuals who are not to be trusted. Why is it that nearly every politician does not seem to be able to have any personal opinions that deviate from the tribal instructions of their party? The party line must be followed to the letter. Have you ever heard a politician answer  a question by saying "I'm sorry I don't know the answer to that."?