Talking politics: Building support for democratic reform

Article

Dissatisfaction with how democracy works has been rising for more than a decade.

For the first time since the mid-1970s, a clear majority of people in Britain are dissatisfied with democracy, and recent scandals in British politics such as the ‘partygate’ affair have added further strain.

There is considerable public appetite for an ambitious programme of ‘democratic renewal’. But desire alone is not enough: it needs to be mobilised into political action.

This requires effective framing and politicisation. In this report, working with Focaldata, we ran a survey experiment to assess the effectiveness of different rhetorical approaches to framing democratic reform.

Related items

  1. View of Bank of England, Royal Exchange, and Duke of Wellington equestrian statue (1844) with skyscrapers and construction in background.

    Navigating in the fog: Why the OBR should hold its nerve on the productivity forecast

    The fiscal watchdog is under pressure to downgrade its forecast, costing the chancellor billions – but this would be premature.
  2. A busy bus full of people of all ages. An older couple smile at a younger woman with a baby in a pushchair

    Everyday concerns: What people want from transport

    Transport has a key role to play in achieving the UK government's missions and improving lives. 
  3. An unrecognisable woman playing a slot machine in a social club

    Reforming gambling taxation: How to lift half a million children out of poverty

    A key priority for the government’s upcoming child poverty strategy should be to remove the two-child limit and scrap the household benefit cap.