Surveys of public opinion – including our own – continue to show that trust in the UK’s elected officials is abysmally low. The blame for much of this can be laid at the door of the behaviour of senior political figures in the last decade. But those actions have been enabled by a lax system of regulating the behaviour of elected officials, both during their time in office and afterwards, that relies far too heavily on an outdated “good chaps” theory of regulation.
Spotlight advocates for improvements in the way standards in public life are regulated and monitors the government’s efforts in this area. As part of this work, we recommend putting the standards regulators on a statutory footing and giving them the resources and independence to do their jobs properly. We also advocate for improved lobbying transparency and more effective procedures for tackling conflicts of interest in government.
The government’s lobbying review is a rare chance to fix a transparency regime that has fallen behind international standards. Our submission calls for a comprehensive lobbying register, tougher enforcement, stronger disclosure rules, and reforms to rebuild public trust in decision-making.
We are in an era of profound disillusionment in politics. Recent polling by More in Common shows that 87% of Britons have little or no trust in politicians, with public...
Spotlight on Corruption has called for a comprehensive lobbying transparency register covering both consultancy and in-house lobbyists, backed by stronger enforcement and more detailed, timely disclosures. Our response to the Ethics and Integrity Commission's review also calls for fairer access to decision-makers and stronger safeguards against conflicts of interest when ministers and officials move into the private sector.
The government’s plan to raise the bar for including consultation requirements in legislation is a risky move that could threaten public trust in politics.
The government’s plan to raise the bar for including consultation requirements in legislation is a risky move that could threaten public trust in politics.
The government’s plan to raise the bar for including consultation requirements in legislation is a risky move that could threaten public trust in politics.
There is rightly huge public demand that Mandelson and those who saw fit to appoint him face meaningful accountability. But former Prime Minister, Gordon Brown’s intervention over the weekend that...
The Mandelson scandal must lead to a review of whether the new misconduct in public office offence in the Hillsborough Bill is robust enough, and urgent measures to ensure greater...
