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Toluna QuickSurveys confirms 83% of the British public have less trust in MPs than ever before
- 80% of people are angered by the way politicians have behaved
- 46% will change the way they vote at the next election as a result
13 May 2009: Online research panel provider Toluna spoke to 2000 UK residents in the last 24 hours to assess the true extent of public dissatisfaction towards MPs following the expenses scandal. Of the 2000 respondents questioned, 83% said they could no longer trust MPs, With a large majority (90%) agreeing that the expenses revelations had undermined the moral authority of politicians.
It is clear the government has underestimated the impact of the situation on voters, with 82% criticising the government for not reacting strongly enough and 46% stating the scandal has impacted the way they will vote in the next election. This is followed by 93% of respondents demanding MPs pay back excessive claims, and that expenses should be published on a quarterly (47%) or monthly (43%) basis to make MPs more accountable to the public.
There has also been a mixed reaction to proposals of scrapping expenses in favour of a salary increases for MPs with 46% in favour, and 40% against. However, 91% of people felt the current average salary of £63K was sufficient for a MP.
The research also asked people what measures they thought would solve the problems surrounding MP’s expenses:
- The majority (48%) felt MPs should be held more accountable for expenses by an independent expense review panel
- 42% want MPs to provide receipts for everything they claim
- 43% felt a set living allowance would be more favourable than expenses
- 45% said there should be clearer guidance on what can and cannot be claimed
Toluna will be repeating the survey on an ongoing basis to gauge the nation’s state of mind as the situation progresses. For further information or if you would like to receive these ongoing updates, please contact Hotwire PR on 020 7608 2500
Editorial contacts
Tim Masih or Annette Leach
+44 (0) 207 608 2500
Mark Simon, Toluna UK
mark.simon@toluna.com
About Toluna QuickSurveys
Toluna QuickSurveys is a revolutionary self-service tool that enables you to conduct market research quickly, easily and cost effectively.
- Create a survey of up to 5 questions
- Select up-to 2,000 nationally representative respondents
- Pay online using a credit card or PayPal
- Immediately follow the results live online and complete within 24 hours (speed of completion may vary by country)
Once your survey has been created it will automatically appear live on targeted specific areas of Toluna.com – a global community site that provides a forum where over 2.5 million members interact and poll each other on a broad range of topics.
Click here for more information about Toluna QuickSurveys and to receive your FREE trial
