Two in three Britons want a new political party to take on the Tories and Labor

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Nearly two in three voters want a new political party to take on the Tories and Labour, according to a shocking new study on trust in politics.

< p>Britain is increasingly pessimistic, distrustful of government and dismissive of politicians, according to the annual Edelman Trust Barometer survey.

Three-quarters of people (75%) said they thought the UK was heading in the wrong direction; record figure since the survey began in 2001.

And 61% agreed the UK 'needs a whole new kind of political party to compete with the Conservatives and Labor for power".

Only 23% of those polled said they felt close to the Conservatives, down four points since 2022, compared to 29% saying the same about Labour, an increase of six points.

However, the Trust Barometer also found widespread "disdain" for politicians, with trust in government at its lowest level since 2016, at just 27%.

Underlying that figure was a 'disastrous' view of politicians in general, with 68% saying politicians were more likely to lie, 77% saying they made it worse and 80% saying they made it worse. more divided country.

Trust in individual politicians was also limited. ed, Rishi Sunak seeing his score drop 10 points to 25%, while Chancellor Jeremy Hunt scored 18%. Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer was more trusted than other senior Westminster officials, but still only scored 31%.

The survey also found evidence Brexit regret. Some 54% of people also said they would vote to stay if the EU referendum was held again, compared to just 32% saying they would vote to leave.

Only members of the baby boomer generation were more likely to vote back Leave over Remain, 47% to 44%.

Edelman Chairman and CEO Ed Williams said, "If the Political leaders are missing this moment and failing to seize the opportunity to articulate an inspiring and galvanizing vision…and resort to old responses to outdated debates, so the data indicates that British politics is preparing for a seismic shock."

He added: "If the strong demand for reframing and reflection our existing political establishment, then we should not be s...