The government hasn't made its first year count when it comes to restoring trust, campaigners say on the anniversary of Labour's general election victory
Statement from Unlock Democracy
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Labour has followed through on only 1 in 3 of its manifesto pledges to rebuild trust in politics, according to a new report from Unlock Democracy. (1) Released one year to the day since Keir Starmer stood on the steps of Downing Street and said “this lack of trust can only be healed by actions not words” (2), the report card measures Labour’s delivery against its pre-election rhetoric. It comes on the back of the latest British Social Attitudes survey finding trust in government has fallen to new record lows since Labour came to office. (3)
Separate, forthcoming analysis from the pressure group will highlight the risk, for Labour’s prospects of reelection, of the party neglecting its commitment to restoring public trust. Improvements to living standards, one of Labour’s six milestones (4), may not be enough to halt Reform UK’s rise, this study suggests, especially if trust in politics remains very low.
The government has so far sought to downplay calls for further action to tackle trust, pointing to the limited changes it has already made. (5) Reports also suggest that the government’s Elections Bill - and with it the chance to restrict the stranglehold of wealthy donors on the major parties, another source of public disquiet (6) - may be delayed well into next year, concerning campaigners. (7)
Unlock Democracy's report card emphasises several relatively straightforward measures that Labour could implement to improve trust. These include tightening restrictions on MPs’ second jobs, banning MPs accepting freebies above a nominal value, and strengthening the rules on ministers lobbying for companies they used to regulate. At the least, the pressure group argues, Labour politicians could choose to abide by these higher standards, setting an example for other parties to follow.
The government's Bill to abolish hereditary peers, itself a potential opportunity to address the public's lack of confidence in the House of Lords - only 1 in 5 people have any degree of confidence, according to YouGov (8) - is one manifesto commitment for which the report card awards Labour full marks. Given its slow progress through parliament, Unlock Democracy has also been urging the government to use this Bill to follow through on some of its other Lords reform pledges. This week, however, Labour peers voted against proposals to give the House of Lords Appointments Commission the power to block unsuitable appointees. (9) This despite Labour promising in its manifesto to “reform the appointments process to ensure the quality of new appointments” (10), and recent polling from the Constitution Unit showing the public overwhelmingly supports such a change. (11)
Across the report's four democracy-related themes, each broken down into specific commitments, Labour scores 26% against its manifesto pledges after its first year in office.
Tom Brake, Director of Unlock Democracy, commented:
“Trust is the lifeblood of democracy - and right now, it’s almost entirely drained away. What limited action the government has so far taken has failed to stem the bleeding. Labour must move beyond rhetoric and deliver on its pledges to rebuild public trust in full.
“Without urgent, visible action to clean up Westminster and modernise our institutions, Labour risks deepening the crisis in mistrust it promised to solve.”
-ENDS-
Notes to editors:
(1) Labour scores 36% in the section ‘Restoring Public Service at Westminster’, losing points for its poor handling of Freebiegate. Full report card available here: https://unlockdemocracy.org.uk/s/Democracy-progress-report.pdf
(2) Keir Starmer's first speech as Prime Minister, 5th July 2024: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/keir-starmers-first-speech-as-prime-minister-5-july-2024
(3) British Social Attitudes 42, 25th June 2025, ‘Britain’s democracy’: https://natcen.ac.uk/publications/bsa-42-britains-democracy
(4) BBC News, 5th December 2024: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn9gxvppxqpo
(5) See here: Cabinet Office minister, Abena Oppong-Asare: “We are restoring confidence in government and the highest standards in public life and have already taken steps to improve probity and transparency, including through issuing a new ministerial code, which highlights the importance of the principles of public life, by strengthening the terms of reference for the independent adviser, and by introducing a new monthly register of gifts and hospitality.” Also here and here.
(7) The Observer, 26th June 2025: https://observer.co.uk/news/politics/article/kings-speech-set-to-be-delayed-as-labour-try-to-push-legislation-through-the-lords
(8) YouGov, 13th January 2025: https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/trackers/confidence-in-the-house-of-lords
(9) Hansard, Division record for Wednesday 2nd July 2025: https://hansard.parliament.uk/Lords/2025-07-02/division/1B671CC6-3CC8-4B0F-86C7-DAFE144CC46A/HouseOfLords(HereditaryPeers)Bill?outputType=Party
(10) Labour Party 2024 election manifesto: https://labour.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Labour-Party-manifesto-2024.pdf
(11) The Constitution Unit, 30th June 2025: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/constitution-unit/news/2025/jun/public-wants-house-lords-reform-go-further-limit-appointments-and-size-chamber