Government Accused Of Floundering On Transparency

Constitutional experts and MPs across the political divide, including cabinet ministers, believe the UK government has “floundered” on transparency.

A new Institute for Government (IfG) report has now urged both the Conservatives and Labour to recognise that they themselves would reap the rewards of improved government transparency.

The IfG report, seen by PoliticsHome, suggests that the UK government has been focusing too much on short-term “burdens” of transparency rather than long-term gains of a culture of openness. 

“The government has lost some momentum on transparency in the last few years… part of this is because transparency can be difficult for Government in the short run, whether by exposing politicians to criticism or creating work for officials,” IfG researcher Sachin Savur said.

“As our report shows, there are clear benefits that can outweigh these costs in the long run – but ministers need to commit to doing transparency properly and sustain their focus or they won’t see the pay-off… the general election will be a chance to reset that approach.”

In July last year, the government published a set of proposals to improve ethical standards in government, while Labour is also considering how the party might improve transparency if they come into government. Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner has championed the need for Government to be more transparent about the process by which it investigates breaches of the ministerial code. 

There is a growing frustration that the state of transparency in the UK has been poor for years, and is at risk of becoming entrenched. 

"Transparency has fallen off a cliff since the last General Election, leaving the public furious,” Liberal Democrat Health spokesperson Daisy Cooper told Po