Labour warned to fix trust as well as raising living standards to defeat Reform

Labour hasn't made its first year count when it comes to restoring trust, campaigners say on the anniversary of Keir Starmer ’s general election victory.

The government has so far followed through on only 1 in 3 of its pledges to rebuild trust in politics, according to a new report from campaign group Unlock Democracy.

Released as Labour marks its first year in office, the ‘report card’ follows the British Social Attitudes survey finding trust in government has fallen to new record lows in the last year.

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.”

Unlock Democracy gave Labour’s move to scrap hereditary peers full marks against promises made in its manifesto.

But the group expressed disappointment that the government’s Elections Bill - which presents an opportunity to fix much of the issues around trust in the political process - has been delayed, possibly into next year.

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The report calls for Labour to act on tightening restrictions on MPs second jobs, gifts and freebies and lobbying rules.

And it warns Labour’s prospects of re-election may hinge on restoring public trust - with improvements to living standards not being enough to halt the rise of Reform UK.

Mr Brake added: “Without urgent, visible action to clean up Westminster and modernise our institutions, Labour risks deepening the crisis in mistrust it promised to solve.”