Unlock Democracy

Transparency must be the watchword for all political parties.

When staff from public affairs companies volunteer for a party during the General Election campaign, this should be reported. There is no legal requirement, but it would be the right thing to do.

Corporate lobbyists at heart of Labour’s election campaign Lobbyists described work for Labour – which was not declared to authorities – as ‘great for future relationships’

The right to protest is a “vital safety valve” for democracy. Alongside 91 other civil society organisations, we urged the Home Secretary to “reverse the crackdown” by successive governments on the right to peaceful protest.

Campaign groups call on Home Office to stop ‘steady erosion’ of protest rights Civil society organisations demand home secretary protects the ‘safety valve’ of democracy

Far too many MPs juggle multiple jobs alongside what should be their main job of representing their constituents and scrutinising legislation.

We have written to the Modernisation of the House of Commons Committee with some recommendations.

https://unlockdemocracy.org.uk/our-letter-second-jobs

Too many constituency based opinion polls were widely inaccurate, predicting a range of winners, with massively differing percentages for each party.

Many amounted to little more than disinformation.

The polling industry must establish what went wrong and stop it happening again.

Times letters: Problematic polls in the election campaign Sir, Daniel Finkelstein is rather too generous regarding the use of multi-level regression and post-stratification polls in the general election

An open government will need a strong ethics and integrity commission.

Senior Minister Pat Fadden's commitment to such a body is welcome.

He says he will 'Show not Tell' on this issue.

The 'Tell' is on record.

The 'Show' must follow.

Civil society organisations seek Starmer commitment to open government Letter to PM says open government “revival” can help ensure officials act in the public interest and enhance the integrity of public institutions

MPs who spend an inordinate amount of time boosting their personal incomes, rather than supporting their constituents or scrutising legislation, should get their P45

We suggest a cap on extra earnings of half an MPs salary and no more than 15hours work

Curbs on MPs’ second jobs to combat sleaze Labour’s plan to reform Westminster procedures includes a ban on consultancy roles and fines for former ministers who breach lobbying rules

Time and again, our unfair voting system means the makeup of Parliament does not reflect the votes of the people.

We have teamed up with our allies at Compass and Make Votes Matter on a joint petition to the new Prime Minister.

Sign the petition below 👇

Join the demand for a democracy that really represents us A representative democracy must broadly reflect the interests and attitudes of its people. The outcome of Thursday's election has stretched the critical idea that we live in such a democracy to breaking point. Under the First Past the Post system, the governing party were awarded 63 percent of seats...

We have a new Government with a landslide majority of over 410 seats, elected on barely more than a third of the vote.

This could be the most disproportionate result in our country’s history.

The national debate on changing our electoral system must start now.

Restoring trust in politics doesn't depend on funding or passing laws

This joint letter signed by.amongst others Civil Exchange, Transparency International UK, Compassion In Politics, Compass, Make Votes Matter, and the Electoral Reform Society sets out four things Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer can announce to demonstrate that he will clean up politics.

We know our political system has serious flaws, but voting is a vital part of driving change and shaping the future - so don’t miss the chance!

Don't forget to bring photo ID!

Helpful information from the Electoral Commission on what to do if you have forgotten to post your postal vote or it hasn’t arrived in time 👇

Elections in your area Find upcoming elections in your area, your polling station, candidates, and contact details for your local electoral services team

We’ve had a brilliant response to our General Election Appeal so far - thank you!

Have a look at our manifesto and consider donating to our efforts to persuade the next Government to act on reforming our political system 👇

UD manifesto — Unlock Democracy Unlock Democracy Limited (Reg. No. 02440899) is incorporated in England and Wales. Registered office: North Wing, 2nd Floor, 55 Broadway, London SW1H 0BB.

Remember, if you don't have a form of photo voter ID you have until 5pm *TODAY* to apply for one.

Don't lose your right to vote because you don't have the right ID.

Apply for photo ID to vote (called a ‘Voter Authority Certificate’) Apply for photo ID to vote (Voter Authority Certificate) in some elections and referendums in Great Britain if you do not have an accepted form of ID.

We've put together a manifesto of the political reforms that our country needs 👇

With your help, we will get these policies in front of key Ministers and MPs straight after the General Election.

https://unlockdemocracy.org.uk/manifesto

On Wednesday evening we hosted a discussion "Countdown to polling day: With Sir John Curtice". Sir John was joined by Hardeep Matharu, editor of Byline Times, and Maria Iacovou, Professor of Quantitative Sociology at the University of Cambridge. Our chair was Sangita Myska, journalist and TV presenter.

With one of the most tumultuous General Elections approaching to date, we dived into the recent data showcasing electoral preferences, participation, and patterns.

You can watch the video on our Youtube channel 👇

Countdown to Polling Day: With Sir John Curtice As the General Election campaign gathers steam, all eyes are on the latest opinion polls. But what do they really tell us about how people feel about politic...

Our political systems are not working for people in the UK.

We need to and shift power so democracy works for everyone.

That means cleaning up politics, including everyone and devolving power to communities.

Today is the final day to register to vote in the General Election.

Don't lose your vote - register now.

https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote

The next government must lift the lid on the activities of shadowy think tanks.

While their funders remain largely anonymous, they cannot be described as ‘independent’ & shouldn’t gain easy & regular access to ministers.

Greater transparency is needed.

Mapped: The Tory Network of Climate Denial and Fossil Fuel Funding Speaking outside Downing Street on 23 May, announcing a general election for 4 July, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak took a swipe at what he dubbed “environmental dogma”. It was a sign of how much has changed since 2021, when the UK hosted the flagship COP26 UN climate summit with a promise “irrefu...

We welcome the promising steps Labour has outlined in its manifesto to rebuild our crumbling political system. But if elected, Labour’s plans would need fleshing out in government. Read our statement 👉 https://bit.ly/45mgAQW

https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/labour-party-manifesto-key-policies-keir-starmer-general-election-ssr220qw7

Labour manifesto 2024: summary of the key policies Keir Starmer’s pledges on the tax, the economy, the NHS, crime and more show the kind of government he will run if he wins the election

We’re pleased to see so much of Unlock Democracy’s agenda reflected in Green Party of England and Wales’ manifesto.

Our broken politics is in urgent need of repair. We will work with all parties in the next parliament to see as much as possible of this democratic reform agenda delivered.

Our 2024 General Election Manifesto - Green Party Real hope.Real change. Millions of people in our country are feeling insecure and deeply worried about the future. We live in one of the richest countries on the planet, yet nurses are using food banks, our children’s schools are crumbling, a roof over our heads is all too often unaffordable, and ...

Depressingly low levels of trust in politics confirmed in the British Social Attitudes 41 survey:

45% of people “almost never” trust governments to put the nation’s interests first, and 79% say the system of governing Britain needs “a lot of improvement”

Restoring trust must be on the agenda on 5th July!

Unlock Democracy will work with the new government to start this process.

BSA 41: Five years of unprecedented challenges | National Centre for Social Research In this edition of our flagship British Social Attitudes, we assess what impact the last five years has had on the landscape of public attitudes.

Voting in Unlock Democracy’s Council Elections is now open! 🗳️

Members of Unlock Democracy can vote as long as their membership began before 22nd May 2024.

Please look out for an email from OpaVote.

You can read the candidates election addresses here:

Council and Rodell 2024 Election addresses — Unlock Democracy All candidates’ election addresses are available here. Candidates who have not provided an election address are listed with no further information.

We held online hustings for our Council election yesterday 🗳️

Lots of great ideas on how the council can collaborate with staff to maximise Unlock Democracy’s impact after the General Election.

You can read the candidates election addresses here:

Council and Rodell 2024 Election addresses — Unlock Democracy All candidates’ election addresses are available here. Candidates who have not provided an election address are listed with no further information.

With the help of Votes For Schools, over 46,000 young people voted on whether giving rewards for voting is a good idea. Here's their verdict 👇

There’s only one week left to register to vote for the UK General Election on July 4th!

You can register to vote here https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote

With General Election day fast approaching, who is committed to reform of the House of Lords?

Hereditary peers and political donors should have NO role to play in a modern democracy, let alone powers to set our laws.

Support our campaign:

https://secure.unlockdemocracy.org.uk/page/109698/petition/1

With General Election day fast approaching, which parties believe in Moving Power Out of Westminster to Local Communities?

More decisions in TOWN HALLS, fewer in WHITEHALL. Give local people a chance to shape their communities.

Back our campaign here:

Back our campaign to give power to local communities | Unlock Democracy We know that fewer decisions taken by Ministers in Whitehall, and more decisions taken in town halls and local communities will improve our democracy.

Great to see the Lib Dem’s put forward such promising policies to repair and renew our democracy after the election.

We’re urging all parties to follow suit, and especially:

- back our campaign to register every voter
- commit to scrapping voter ID
- ensure this is the last election under FPTP.

Tax and the NHS: key takeaways from the Lib Dem manifesto launch No major surprises at launch, as Davey attempts to separate party from Labour and Tories in terms of policy costings

55% of people say the health of UK democracy has got worse. Only 5% say it’s got better.

67% think standards in public life have deteriorated. Just 4% say the opposite.

Repairing our democracy needs a proper hearing at the election.

Become a member and help us make the case: https://secure.unlockdemocracy.org.uk/page/110221/donate/1?ea.tracking.id=facebook

Source: https://yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/49596-in-most-ways-most-britons-think-the-uk-is-worse-now-than-it-was-in-2010

MPs who devote hours to their second jobs are unlikely to be effective scrutineers of legislation. Ban second jobs, and MPs would have the time to acquire the skills they need to fulfil all their responsibilities.

UD Director Thomas Brake in The Times and The Sunday Times.

🔗 https://www.thetimes.com/comment/letters-to-editor/article/times-letters-local-mps-and-the-need-for-global-leadership-8hc5llkk8