British Generation Z has a trust issue with the police. This assertion is derived from the conclusions of a study conducted by The Policy Institute at King’s College London, led by scholar Paolo Morini. And that is because the new British government has come to power at a time when, in the words of the Labour Party, “political trust has been destroyed”.
The findings of this research demonstrate the scope of distrust and negative attitudes toward UK institutions.
In 1990, 46% of the British public said they had confidence in Parliament. By 2022, this figure had been reduced by half, to 22%, placing the country behind many of its European neighbours, such as Germany or France.
But they are not just political institutions. Confidence has significantly decreased since the 1980s, when data collection began, for 6 of the 13 institutions with long-term trend data available.
In particular, in 1981, 86% of Britons said they had confidence in the police. This figure fell to 67% in 2022, primarily due to high-profile errors and misconduct by agents.
The United Kingdom faces a specific challenge with young people: institutional trust levels are significantly lower among Generation Z (18-25 years old) than among other generations. Trust in the police stands out again, with a 27 percentage-point difference between Generation Z and the other generations.
This is a next-generation pattern. The analysis shows that Millennials and Generation X Brits in previous surveys did not have such low figures regarding police trust.
What could explain this dynamic among the Generation Z population in Britain? Personal experience is likely to be key. Government data show that, in 2022, two-thirds of all arrests and police searches involved individuals between the ages of 10 and 29. This is a fairly similar match to the current age group of Generation Z.
The recent conclusions of a national survey, as reported by the Youth Panel on police surveillance, indicate that young people, particularly those from minority ethnic communities and the LGBTQ+ community, did not feel heard, taken seriously, or treated fairly by the police.
Generation Z is likely to form impressions about the police as well, based on what they see on social media. At a formative stage in their lives, this generation was heavily exposed to coverage of high-profile police misconduct around the world and became more engaged with movements originating in the United States, such as Black Lives Matter and Defund the Police.
Funding cuts over the past 14 years have resulted in a reduced police presence in many communities in the UK. This has created a void for younger generations and a lack of opportunities for police to build trust.
The government and police should focus on improving training standards so that social interactions with the police, including arrests and searches, are more positive. Evidence shows that perceptions of procedural justice, or the feeling that the police act fairly, can also impact confidence in the police.
Without public trust, the fundamental principle of UK policing – surveillance by consent – cannot survive. The police only obtain their authority through the trust and cooperation of the society they serve. That is why it is vital for the new government to act to resolve it.
With stronger and more engaged communities, and a more systematic evaluation of the good practices already in place across the country, the United Kingdom can begin to regain confidence in the police. But the government and the police must act quickly and decisively, or risk having low levels of trust take root among British young people for their entire lives.
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