Thatcher wins a second term, Cecil Parkinson has an affair with his former secretary, Brighton Bomb, Kinnock becomes Labour leader, Miners’ strike begins. Heseltine resigns over Westland, Jeffrey Archer accused, Financial Services Big Bang, Westminster Cemeteries Scandal. Thatcher wins a third term, SDP-Liberal Alliance breaks down, Eggwina Currie, Homes for Votes. Children Act 1989, Poll Tax riots, Ian Gow murdered, Thatcher ousted.
John Major becomes PM, wins 1992 General Election. Cones Hotline, Black Wednesday, David Mellor resigns, Back to Basics, John Smith dies, Aitken Lies. Labour win a landslide under Blair, Data Protection Act 1998. The Bernie Ecclestone Scandal, Mandelson fails to declare a loan. Devolution in Wales and Scotland, the Good Friday Agreement.
Fuel protests, Mandelson resigns again, Blair wins another landslide. ‘A good day to bury bad news’, Betsygate, Edwina returns. The 45 minute claim, Dr David Kelly commits suicide. Beverley Hughes resigns. Another win for Blair, Jowellgate, Cash for Honours. Cameron replaces Howard, Brown replaces Blair. Peter Hain resigns. The Expenses Scandal, Cash for Influence.
(Bear with me - there is a point to all this)
Irisgate. Cameron leads a coalition, Stephen Timms attacked, David Laws resigns. Equality Act 2010. The UK rejects AV, Liam Fox resigns, the Phone Hacking Scandal, Project Volvo1. The Cash for Access scandal, Chris Huhne lies (and goes to prison), Plebgate. Marriage Equality Act 2013. Maria Miller Resigns, Thornberry takes a photo in #Rochester, Scotland rejects independence. Namagate.
Modern Slavery Act 2015. Cameron wins a majority, Lord Ashcroft publishes a book (with that claim). Corbyn becomes Labour leader. EU Referendum announced, Jo Cox murdered, Leave wins, Cameron Leaves. May becomes PM. Article 50 triggered. May loses her majority, Grenfell. Windrush Scandal, Amber Rudd resigns.
Parliamentary deadlock, May resigns. Johnson becomes PM, parliament prorogued. Johnson wins majority, Corbyn resigns. The UK leaves the EU, Covid arrives. Barnard Castle eye test. Greensill scandal, Hancock resigns, David Amess murdered, Johnson tries to bend the rules for Paterson (who then resigned). Illicit tractors. Partygate, Beergate, Sue Gray Report. Chris Pincher scandal, Johnson resigns. The 49 day reign of Liz Truss. Sunak becomes PM. Sturgeon resigns, Sue Gray returns, Murrell arrested.
That, in a little over 300 words, is a potted (and abridged) history of UK politics over the last 40 years. The reason for this whiplash-inducing trip down memory lane is to provide some context for this edition’s chart. It’s the data from Ipsos MORI’s long running veracity index, exploring how much the British public expect different professions to tell the truth.
As the data shows, we have never trusted politicians. Through the last 40 years there have been crushing landslides (1997, 2019) and finely balanced parliaments (2010, 2017), huge leaps forward (the Good Friday Agreement, the Marriage Equality Act) and deeply murky scandals (Jonathan Aitken, Cash for Honours, Expenses). None of it has moved the dial significantly on trust in politicians.
This might not seem like a ground-breaking revelation, but fairly small variations in the data – it dropping to 13% in 2009 and 12% in 2022 – are sometimes reported (i.e. here, here, here and here) as if the current crop of politicians are uniquely distrusted. They aren’t. Events, like the Truss premiership of last Autumn or the Expenses Scandal of 2009, which put the integrity and competence of a whole class of politicians under the microscope, do tend to result in a drop in trust – but even before those nadirs, the proportion of people expecting politicians to tell the truth is almost never higher than 20%.
This isn’t good news – it isn’t ideal that the majority of the public think that politicians don’t tell the truth, and have thought that way for at least 40 years – but isn’t changing either. Distrusting politicians isn’t evidence of worsening standards, or weakening competence in high office, or a trend to fit a particular partisan narrative. It also isn’t likely to change any time soon.
I had absolutely no memory of this one.