Joe Powell

I congratulate the hon. Member for Mid Dunbartonshire (Susan Murray) on securing the debate. Trust in politics is one of the big challenges of our time. It has never been particularly high, but at the moment, Britain’s trust in politics is among the lowest in western Europe. There are obviously many theories as to why that might be, but, from my experience before coming to this place of working on open government in over 70 countries, I recognise that there are ways in which we could reverse the trend. That is part of what this debate is about. My strong belief is that it is about a combination of transparency and accountability plus delivery on the issues that our constituents care about. Those two things do not need to be in tension, although some try to argue that; they can be complementary. The big opportunity coming up for the Government is the White Paper on rewiring the state. I am personally very excited about that, because of the term “taking on unaccountable government”. I hope that there is space in that vision to articulate why open government, transparency and opportunities for public participation lead to better decisions and better government. It is about ensuring that citizens have a voice, and that the state is accountable for decisions and failures are learned from and not covered up. I was therefore really glad that the Prime Minister committed to working with me on justice for Grenfell—a tragedy that would not have happened had the Nolan principles been followed by the leadership of the royal borough of Kensington and Chelsea. I agree with the chair of the Ethics and Integrity Commission and my hon. Friend the Member for Bishop Auckland (Dr Rushworth) that more needs to be done on local government. That is an important commitment in the Government’s anti-corruption plan.