Demos

"There is this whole controversy about 'politician presenters'... you've got a party leader regularly doing a programme, and ex MPs from that same party - the whole roster is very right wing." 💬 Rupa Huq MP questions Ofcom Chief Executive, Melanie Dawes, at today’s #DCMS Committee meeting, challenging the often-criticised practice of serving politicians presenting broadcast news and current affairs programmes. 🎬 Watch this clip for Melanie Dawes response. 📕 Read our latest guest report, Politician Presenters, by Dr James Painter, which examines the legislative landscape surrounding this practice and finds that the UK is an outlier in Europe 👉 https://lnkd.in/ea_P5U7r

🚨 NEW REPORT 🚨 Beyond the Usual Suspects: A new model for MP-citizen engagement 👂 Just 4% of people believe politicians act in the country’s best interests. The usual ways of reaching an MP (surgeries, coffee mornings, emails) are used by a narrow slice of the public and leave most constituents unheard. 🪑 So we tested something different. In South Derbyshire and Weston-super-Mare, we brought together 31 constituents who had never had contact with their MP. Over three sessions, they worked alongside Samantha Niblett MP and Dan Aldridge MP to choose a local issue and co-create an Action Plan. What we found: ✅ 94% of participants agreed their MP has good intentions, up from 51% before the sessions 📈 The share who disagreed that their MP “usually ignores my community” rose by 49 points, against 10 points in a matched control group 🧠 Understanding of what an MP actually does rose from 37% to 64% 81% attendance across all three sessions, and around 180 more people reached through friends, family and digital engagement ✉️ And the plans led to action. In Weston-super-Mare, participants flagged empty shops on a local high street. Dan Aldridge MP wrote to the property owner and the local council, and shared both letters with constituents so they could see their concerns being taken forward. 👍 As one of the participating MPs put it, the process was about “actually bringing it back down to what you can control and what you can deliver.” 📜 We’re recommending a national review of the MP role, a Democratic Innovation Fund for MPs’ offices, and proper backing for MPs who want to run processes like this. We’re already trialling the approach on immigration with a Labour and a Conservative MP. 🙏 Huge thanks to Daniel Aldridge MP, Samantha Niblett MP and their teams, and to authors Lucy Bush, Naema Malik and Abduraman Sesay. Read the full report: ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/eMzHkWSK #Democracy #Trust #CitizenEngagement #Parliament

📝 New guest paper | Politician Presenters: How UK Regulation of Politicians Presenting News & Current Affairs Programmes Compares with Europe Should serving politicians be presenting current affairs" programmes'? In this new guest paper, Dr James Painter of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism finds that the UK is an outlier in Europe in allowing serving politicians to present news and current affairs programmes on regulated radio and television services. Drawing on evidence from 37 media regulators across Europe, the first comprehensive study of its kind found that in 35 countries, regulators identified no examples of the practice. Only Iceland and Malta reported any exceptions. In 34 countries, legislation, regulation or professional codes ban or substantially restrict it, and Ofcom appears to be the only regulator that distinguishes between news and current affairs when deciding who can present. The findings come amid growing debate about Ofcom’s regulation of #dueimpartiality and the use of active politicians as presenters. 📕 Read the paper: https://lnkd.in/ea_P5U7r

🧰 A Citizen Budget 2026 | Taxing Extraction Today we publish the second paper in our 'A Citizen Budget 2026' series, 'Taxing Extraction: Taxing extractive and unproductive sectors to support British households in need'. To rebuild trust in the tax system ahead of the #Autumn2026Budget, the government must show not only what it is for, but what it is against. Drawing on a nationally representative survey of 2,000 people, the paper finds that taxing cryptocurrency gains through income tax rather than capital gains tax would raise up to £250m a year. But critically, if the spending was directed to fund the cut to VAT on electricity bills, the policy make the tax system fairer in the eyes of half the public, against just 11% thinking it would make the tax system less fair. Supporters of every party would feel more favourable towards the government as a result, and the reform passes the 'Makerfield test', attracting support from the third most deprived constituencies outside London and the South East. 🏠 The paper also proposes a 200% council tax premium on non-UK residents' second homes to fund support for rough sleepers – the most popular reform we tested. 🔄 The series will continue with proposals on funding the future, a National Bond, strengthening the fiscal contract and a DOGE on tax. 📕 Read Taxing Extraction here: https://lnkd.in/ena_yf5W

📝 New guest paper | Work in Progress: How to Upgrade Democracy in the Age of AI What if #democracy isn’t failing as an idea – but the way we practise it is no longer fit for the world we live in? In this new guest paper, Sir Geoff Mulgan, former founding director of Demos and Professor at UCL, and Dr Alex Fischer, member of the Australian Resilient Democracy Network, argue that democracy needs to be treated as a work in progress. They set out six core functions of democracy – authorisation, decision-making, constraint, implementation, knowledge and participation – and explore how each can be strengthened and adapted. Drawing on 50+ examples of democratic innovation across 25+ countries, the paper considers how new approaches, including #AI and digital technologies, could help democracies harness collective intelligence, strengthen participation and adapt to the challenges of the 21st century. 📕 Read the paper: https://lnkd.in/eYpwED5b

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📣 Hiring now! | Associate Director, Digital Policy Are you a digital policy expert looking to play a leading role in strengthening our information environment with a particular focus on research studies and AI policy at one of the UK’s most dynamic and influential think tanks? Join the Demos Digital team as Associate Director (Digital Policy) and shape high-impact research and policy development across our work on Resilient Information Ecosystems. You’ll play a key role in shaping Demos’s digital policy agenda, evidencing the threats and opportunities of AI for our information landscape, and co-leading our Epistemic Security Network. 🗓️ Apply by 26 October, 9am 📌 Find out more and submit your application: https://lnkd.in/e-_JQvM3

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📺 Starting now! Watch online here ➡️ https://lnkd.in/ep6w3qmU