Elections expert John Curtice explains the all-time low public trust in the government

[@MrGavinBoyd]

Worst government of my lifetime.

[@johnchristmas7522]

About three years ago, a questionnaire was put before about 5,000 people from the general public. The question was."Who would you vote for, Labour,Tories, or an Alternative, if they all had the same amount of power?" 70% said the "Alternative". I am not a bit surprised, I'm 80 years old and have seen the last 50years of British governments. NOT ONE has had a NATIONAL PLAN. They ALL worry about their party and themselves. Over the years, they have been the UK's Achilles heel. They have destroyed our industrial base, close down vast industries without putting anything back in place. Have allowed good British companies to be sold off to Foreign businesses, not sorted the NHS (It obviously cannot go on they way it is funded) let swaths of infrastructure get to the point of total breakdown. Any person within a business, would have sacked any politician within weeks. None are fit for purpose. We desperately need a different system. One that does not give a person high office, just because they came from Eton or Harrow. Their needs to be a test for MP's over and above normal education. The ones we have now are all third rate.

[@markherzog9484]

I think you’ll find it’s the Tories and extreme Capitalism that have destroyed our industrial base…..and with it, our NHS and state pension scheme

[@davidmccabe4041]

If you want a model for a national plan you could do worse than read and study irelands first programme for economic expansion published in 1959 which formed the initial basis for irelands remarkable success over the past 60 years David McCabe Dublin chartered accountant aged 85.

[@stephfoxwell4620]

Trust has been fatally undermined everywhere in Britain. Once Trust is gone, civilization follows.

[@frankshailes3205]

"There is no such thing as society" - Margaret Thatcher

[@stephfoxwell4620]

@@frankshailes3205 Or Trust

[@Matt-cz6ti]

The Conservative Party is almost solely responsible for this

[@pjj177]

Well , the WEF run both Tory and the labour party. Name an mp from either party who isn't on the WEF books ..... Il wait

[@paulies5407]

It started with Blair.

[@mattspintosmith5285]

Also the Farageist Brexit campaign lies - about Turkey being about to join the EU.

[@rwo5402]

@@paulies5407 ah, 14 years of a car crash and it started with blair..... BS.

[@MrOriol24]

He is the one one started it and the tories just took over it and carried on his legacy.​@@rwo5402

[@catherinemartin6258]

It’s the conservatives that’s made me not to trust politicians anymore

[@jamessomers8955]

Yeah because Tony Blair was a bastion of truth......

[@kingpig8732]

@@jamessomers8955 At least he oversaw a growing economy

[@alanbradley9621]

Have you considered that we don't want any of them? Always party first over interests of the country. Boris lies, Blair lied(Iraq), Truss was insane, House of Lords keeps growing and costing a fortunes every day. Just Get Rid Of all of it. Then start again from ground up. Why go on with this?

[@alanbradley9621]

​@@kingpig8732Also a Glowing Economy Re All those flames and Bombs in Iraq helped his personal economy no end........

[@maryotoole7389]

Started with Farage and voted brexit then Tory’s got in and everything went down from there Tory’s have cut everything to the bone and this is the result

[@christinalloyd9566]

Positions of power ALWAYS attract narcissists. Whether it is in politics, government organisations or private companies. Always, always, always.

[@advocate1563]

Worse than narcissists - sociopaths.

[@MatthewBelsey]

I am old enough to remember Harold Macmillan onwards the last three in five years of tory government are the most appalling by a country mile.

[@GeoffV-k1h]

No one should ever trust the Tories.

[@martinfox7813]

No one should trust any politician all liars left and right

[@jamessomers8955]

No one should ever trust politicians.

[@zakjuly6721]

Vote Reform

[@infohound41]

or Reform - they are weird

[@joewilson4191]

​@@zakjuly6721. You want to vote a far right racist party.

[@FiveLiver]

Not just the government, it's the political class as a whole.

[@GarethMachin-rb2sg]

I have sympathy for Labour Lib Dem Greens and Nationalists and a few half decent tories. 90 % of this trust issue sits firmly with the tory party.

[@markherzog9484]

On the 4th of July, vote for a party that wants to do things for you, and not to you…….and remember the Tories voted against the establishment of the NHS 9 times in Parliament, they’re still acting to dismantle it 75 years later……

[@adamwilcox6405]

This blanket thing across all politictians is so annoying. Lets be honest, there's one party that OVERWHELMINGLY is responsible for lying, gaslighting and CONing the public.

[@minniebluebell6388]

😂 you still don't understand your choice is a illusion, they are different cheeks on the same A hole

[@marumaru6084]

Labour?

[@markjohnston7869]

The Starmer Party are as bad if not worse than the lying Tories and the liars in the MSM just cover for them.

[@markjohnston7869]

@@marumaru6084 The Starmer Party are every bit as dishonest and the Tory Party.

[@adamwilcox6405]

@@stephenmarks5239 I am. Are you genuinely comparing them with Bozo, Truss and Soonout?

[@ellenoneill7853]

There's too many people in the country and not enough people paying taxes.

[@ColinBarrett001]

And yet the billionaire owners of the Tory party have doubled their £billions - in their off-shore, non-dom accounts. Perhaps that's where all the money's gone...?

[@JulianWestcott]

Politicians think throwing our money at problems is easier than actually managing spending and stopping waste

[@alst4817]

Sounds like you get your knowledge of politics and economics from the daily mail!😂

[@piccalillipit9211]

have you been awake for the last 14 years...???

[@marumaru6084]

@@alst4817 Are you suggesting any government department doesnt have to much red tape? DEI an easy example?

[@tommymorrison6478]

Do you have any evidence for that or did The Voices tell you? Reflect on the possibility that perhaps national problems are more thorny than you imagine, that their solutions are consequently less apparent, and that there may not even be a solution. Alternatively, stand for parliament yourself and show everyone how it's done. At least then it won't be quite so easy to write you off as just another arrogant windbag.

[@marumaru6084]

@@tommymorrison6478 Ah your insulting people you must be a lefty!

[@mikesheridan5218]

This is the beginning of then end for our medieval institutions ....

[@sidcrowe7301]

I'd like to know who really pulls the strings on the British state .

[@queenie1949]

As Sir Billy Connolly says, ‘don’t vote it only encourages them’. Also…’the desire to be a politician should bar you for life from ever becoming one’…..

[@christhompson9819]

You look at Governments and Cabinets in the past and the absolute political giants of both parties and theres no one can hold a candle to any of them

[@jedtattum9996]

14 years of tory misrule. does that ring a bell for anyone else?

[@petermizon4344]

AND IMMIGRATION WAS NOT A BIG PROBLEM BEFORE BREXIT, TORIES HAVE COST THIS COUNTRY MANY BILLIONS IN OUR TAXES THRU BREXIT,

[@georgesdelatour]

STOP SHOUTING. Tony Blair quintupled immigration from what it was under John Major. According to his speech-writer Andrew Nether, this was done "to rub the right's nose in diversity and render their arguments out-of-date". During the whole of the Blair, Brown and Cameron years, non-EU immigration was 1) massively higher than under Major, and 2) greater than EU immigration. Before 2004, all EU countries had broadly similar wage rates. But when the East European countries joined the EU in 2004, their average wage rates were 7 to 10 times lower than UK rates, so of course millions of them came to the UK. Blair chose to take the full hit of such immigration on day one, and not phase it in as EU rules allowed. It wouldn't have been difficult for the EU to come up with a formula whereby freedom of movement would have been phased in even more gradually, as average wage rates converged across the bloc. But Blair wanted the immigration mainly for political reasons, to change the demographics of the country, and turn Labour into a UK version of the US Democratic Party.

[@petermizon4344]

@@georgesdelatour HE ALSO GOT NHS BACK TO NORMAL AFTER 18 YEARS OF STAGNATION OF TORY RULE AND SAME THING HAPPENED, WAKE UP, TV THEY ALSO GAVE US MINIMUM ESGE SOMETHING SAID IT WOULD CLOSE ALL COMPANIES

[@maccagrabme]

Yes it was otherwise Brexit wouldn't have happened. Have you the mind of a clown fish?

[@Martynjs]

What we need is a party capable of governing the country! None of the major parties offer anything close.

[@somenamethatdoesntmatter]

Is there a case to be made that there is no single group that will fulfil the role to people's standards and expectations? The reality is we are a post empire nation and the last embers of that empire (financialisation) has been fading and with it our position in the world will continue diminishing, even if we reached 3% growth. Labour have a hard time ahead, I don't think anyone will be pleased with any government. But for now at least the tories are at the end of their cycle and basically a rabble of 50p bullingdon bandits, grabbing what they can will be purged.

[@georgesdelatour]

@@somenamethatdoesntmatter I don’t think this “post-Empire” phrase means anything. No one in Britain should care if our relative position in some GDP chart goes down because countries with huge populations modernise. If giant countries like India and Indonesia get richer, that’s great. It doesn’t hurt us at all. If we’re resourceful, we can develop products to sell to their growing middle class. And anyway, even though India has a higher GDP than Switzerland, Switzerland has a much higher GDP per capita. Economically, it’s better to be the median Swiss citizen than the median Indian. We should only focus on raising our GDP per capita, and just let aggregate GDP find its level in the emerging world. I think financialisation has been a mistake, both in the UK and the USA. One problem with it is it ties up too much talent in merely making money out of money, rather than money out of things. Another is, it can’t gainfully employ enough of the UK population to replace what we lost through deindustrialisation. Between 1973 and 2016 manufacturing shrank from 30% of UK GDP to just 9%. In the early 19th century, Friedrich List said that free trade between Britain and Germany would be a disaster, because British industry would out-compete and destroy nascent German industries. In the late 20th, it turned out to be the opposite way round. We can still get back into manufacturing at scale if we choose to. The US has decided to do this because of its growing conflict with China. While we don’t have all of the US’s advantages, it’s not impossible for Britain to do something similar. Our main problem is, our political class have almost no connection to industry and manufacturing. They’re all PPE graduates and lawyers.

[@jamessomers8955]

Never going to happen thanks to devolution. Instead of one voice of governance we have five. Tony Blairs legacy of chaos.

[@somenamethatdoesntmatter]

​@@georgesdelatour Is it reasonable to say that as our total relative gdp wains, our ability to influence the global order in a way which benefits us diminishes? It's not that what you are saying isn't true. But that I personally dont think its either-or. An indisputable fact is, if the median distribution stays the same, but the total pie is smaller compared to other nations. Our bargaining and purchasing power across nations is diminished and with it our ability to set the rules. It feels like with globalisation having a wobble there could be a new order drawn up. Do we have less power now than post ww2 to influence the rules. I don't know, but probably. I agree some form of tangible industrial strategy is possible, especially if we narrow our focus. I don't know what we could manufacture locally and with local supply chains, it ideally needs to have something fundamental to the uk at its core, but we don't have much in unique geographic resource. Our sciences are good, which is hard to replicate, but if we keep going down the anti immigration path that will suffer. Our services have kept us afloat, but ai will start stripping the junior jobs out in those industries soon. New jobs will be created ofc but there will be a lot of pain in the adjustment But at this point, i don't know why im gibbering on with my half baked ideas. everything is fine. Perhaps i need to be more positive about my kids future!

[@TerribleFire]

Services are at a record low and taxes at a record high. The people who use services should contribute the most towards them.

[@charlesbruggmann7909]

It all come back to cake. The British people want it, lots of it but they refuse to pay enough tax to pay for it - remember what Boris promised.

[@stoobydootoo4098]

'TRUST PLUMMETS' In what constituency and for which Party is the trustworthy Plummets standing?

[@JelMain]

He's Rishi's Butler.

[@nenehermannfoundation1187]

the big problem not addressed -- a labour super majority for what? VAT on School fees, and a Green energy public company.

[@geraldbrookes3666]

Starmer hasn't won ,Sunak lost it

[@jondarbyshire-s7k]

Yes, so there will be no honeymoon period for Labour.

[@fenderek666]

Tories spent 14 years lying through their teeth Even leavers know Rexit was one big lie Trust? What trust?

[@disasterarea9341]

wow i had never heard of the zinoviev letter before, thank you prof. curtis for showing me this illuminating piece of history :)

[@nicholasjagger6557]

PR is the best worst choice to move politics forward. Because of the pointless adversarial legacy, we don't have long-term plans for any of the things we as a society need. It won't happen and on we will go getting poorer and less healthy, with little of the infrastructure needed for a green future. If we don't have a grren future, we won't have a future at all. All the election coverage is just chatter.

[@johnreas9216]

Nigel LOVES LOVES LOVES England to his core…….and that’s all the votes need to know to SAVE their beautiful Nation from becoming the next Lebanon!

[@caribstu]

All the people commenting here that the Tories are responsible for the lack of trust clearly don't remember Tony Blair.

[@Cincinnatus-q4i]

If we had Swiss-style Direct Democracy things would get done and distrust of politicians wouldn't matter. MP's would do what we told them

[@charlesbruggmann7909]

Unfortunately, as was proven in 2016, the British people’s absolute love of cake and unicorns means that you are incapable of running a system based on direct democracy. PS: don’t forget the 2 other pillars of the Swiss system: Federalism (I pay more income tax to my local government than to those in Berne) and government by committee (the Federal Council is made up of 7 people from 4 parties who form a ‘directorate’).

[@richardjames3022]

It would not have been so bad with virtually ANY other party than the Tories, they just made matters FAR, FAR worse

[@infohound41]

Agree. Austerity was totally unnecessary.

[@davidhodgson3901]

All of this can be fixed with a more democratic system of electing governments.

[@iseeulysses]

Think all trust ended mid 2021 when people realized they'd been played - or should I say abused.

[@frogletx]

It's a matter of competence. Cameron, May, Johnson, Truss. None of them have given any aura of competence. Last time, who did Labour put up to challenge them? Corbyn! The choice last time was Johnson or Corbyn!! How useless was that? When I think that Sunak seems the least worse... that's quite terrible. He has had an impossible job and the trust in him has been minimal. I have little confidence in Starmer either. This election is a battle of pigmies, not giants.

[@julieclonan2427]

Manufacturing Problems to Flog Their Non Solutions, at the Cost of the Taxpayers.

[@MarjorieStoker-oj8fh]

We saw exactly what these politicians in Westminster was like they have desiccated indigenous people of our beautiful country

[@colinpumpernickel2605]

"was like"? "desiccated'? 😂😂

[@ChrisInTheNorth]

I liked JC's last line about gentlemen and players, I presume he meant ladies too!

[@esioanniannaho5939]

This is the last GE of the current UK !

[@marksimons8861]

Why would leavers be disenchanted? Everyone knew it meant economic, social and political catastrophe, and now it's there for everyone to endure.

[@charlesbruggmann7909]

But Boris promised them cake. He also promised them they wouldn’t have to pay for it 😂😂😂

[@peterdollins3610]

All the work of the Tories until s**t is coming into & out of our ears as with our rivers & seas.

[@kinghenry100]

#FreeSamMelia

[@raniakme]

I trust the analysis of this man

[@jamesbomd3503]

Are we back in covid How things have changed with zoom However are still foggy

[@waterbird-s5q]

Only 45% !!!

[@colinpumpernickel2605]

Has Curtis been banished to the hall because he keeps wittering on about polls? 😂😂😂

[@JosephStealin]

10:04 no people just don’t want the Tories and Labour just win by default. No one is thinking Labour are going to be any better. Also on Reform “Populist” is a weird way of saying popular.

[@karlkidd6295]

And the so-called opposition. Vote Reform UK.

[@charlesbruggmann7909]

What will that achieve? If Brexit hasn’t yet taught you that unicorns don’t actually exist, then you are beyond help.

[@joesoy9185]

It's a haven for the less educated who believe all that the snake oil salesmen have to offer. The one-trick pony Farage believes he can reduce immigration at the click of a finger and they believe it, but are too naïve to see the repercussions of his politics.

[@wendyholland2339]

IF YOUR LIFE HAS GOT BETTER IN THE LAST 27 YEARS VOTE LABOUR NOT A PROBLEM IF YOUR LIFE HAS GOT WORST IN THE LAST 27 YEARS VOTE FOR REFORM😂😂😂😂😂

[@Yourweakminds]

Vote Reform 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧

[@jurz995]

And achieve what exactly? They're populist grifters with no substance

[@pip1723]

Why there policies are pure fantasy .

[@johnbekoe2973]

Reform has no policy apart from immigration

[@kiriakoz]

not enough union jacks in your pitch, so no chance.

[@Silver-st2zq]

The party with 30p Anderson and new member Charlie Mullins 🤮 no thanks.

[@icer71]

Vote Reform UK THE LION HAS AWAKEN

[@joewilson4191]

What UK lion?

[@jeremymanson1781]

Meow

[@johnnydoe3603]

You mean People don’t Trust Tories, but you are going to both sides that Conclusion. 🤣🤣

[@Gary-le7dz]

Nothing new here check your history …. Public have had very little trust in politicians for 100 years

[@briangent6408]

Trust in the main stream media? Including Times Radio.

[@Trebornudd69]

No need for the preview

[@philipedwards9129]

Always enjoyed Prof Cuttice. But today I hear his use of the word rhetoric in relation to Reform. He can't bring himself to use less a negative word such as messaging.

[@DisobedientSpaceWhale]

Vote Big Chungus 🐇

[@timheydon1131]

Social trust declines as social diversity increases,

[@shelleyscloud3651]

Never voted Tory. Campaigned against Brexit. I’ll be voting Reform.

[@barbaraarndt5293]

Really? You vote for the King of Brexit????

[@shelleyscloud3651]

@@barbaraarndt5293 yea, I know, wouldn’t have believed it myself a few years back. I still don’t much like him and won’t pretend that I trust reform or think they’ve all the answers- I’d love to vote SDP but they’re too small to make a difference. I’m just done with the main parties. I’m done with the lies, corruption, incompetence, careerism, principleless, visionless, leadershipless, cowardice & disdain for voters. If Farage is the necessary sand in the oyster shell then so be it, I’ll hold my nose & hope through him the message gets received that things HAVE TO CHANGE. It’s not like he’s going to win anyway but I do want them to feel the pressure.

[@jeremymanson1781]

Reform Limited

[@sydnorth5868]

Two things: 1. Tories are toast, and 2. John Curtice needs a haircut!

[@donttrip8282]

Just the last 5 years hu? 🥴

[@shaun906]

tory radio

[@zakjuly6721]

TELL THEM WHY MUSLIMS ARE VOTING REFORM ? because Con and Labour were complacent in war crimes in GAZA ..... Nigel would be no better but he was not in power .....

[@31Blaize]

That makes no sense. "Farage would be no better" - then why not vote Lib Dems or Greens? Their position has been supporting a ceasefire.

[@piccalillipit9211]

thats BS

[@zakjuly6721]

@@31Blaize Libs and green wont overthrow Tories too weak , think before commenting ..... Reform will destroy Tories

[@radarr5345]

👏🏾👏🏾

[@georgesdelatour]

The real problem is that Parliament lost a lot of its power under Blair’s constitutional reforms. The Blair Supreme Court has effectively told voters they won’t be allowed to vote their way to lower illegal immigration, for instance. Before Blair this would have been unthinkable.

[@somenamethatdoesntmatter]

Can you elaborate on this, what reforms were they specifically? or loosely if you cannot remember.

[@georgesdelatour]

@@somenamethatdoesntmatter Parliament is now subordinate the Blair Supreme Court. This was a constitutional revolution. Blair also gave them a specific remit to interpret the European Convention on Human Rights very broadly, according to "evolving" ideas of rights. They were not forced to interpret it strictly according to what a reasonable person would have understood it to mean in 1952 when it was written. Lord Sumption - who served on the court - has noted the way that Article 8 (the right to family life) gets interpreted to mean anything the judges want it to mean, logical consistency be damned. Wha't more, the court clearly takes sides. They refused to hear any cases from UK citizens objecting to lockdown measures, for instance. It's arbitrary power, and it's political.

[@charlesbruggmann7909]

The real problem is Brexit. The Henry VIII powers given to the government mean that Parliament is incapable of holding ministers to account - assuming they even want to.

[@jeremymanson1781]

Er? In your head maybe but not in the real world.

[@martindimmock4820]

Vote reform

[@Bodie-Boy]

"When France sneezes, the rest of Europe catches cold." ~Metternich

[@susanparkauntiesuze5447]

Starmer’s latest: The Corbyn manifesto, which he as pushing, was uncosted and undeliverable.

[@CardCarrion]

With BREXIT EVERY VOTE counted people liked that they could vote leave when all of westminster wanted to remain . WHY because real democracy is when your vote actually counts .

[@marksimons8861]

Blair might still be Prime Minister were it not for Iraq.

[@georgesdelatour]

Blair realised that the UK was too small for his ego. He's campaigning to replace Klaus Schwab as boss of the WEF.

[@jamessomers8955]

God help us 🤣

[@jonathonjubb6626]

Apologist! Far too accepting of the last few - years, decades even....

[@markpallister9882]

God Forbid Starmergeddon 😂

[@joewilson4191]

Armageddon is already here.

[@gordonsmith7885]

I smell toast