Full Fact's call for change

The two main parties are publishing their manifestos this week - the Conservatives today, and Labour on Thursday. And we have plenty of suggestions for the winner of this election.

Our policy calls for the new government and parliament are split into three themes: what happens during the election period, the behaviour of politicians once elected, and our longer-term vision for a society better able to combat misinformation. During the election campaign we will continue to hold politicians to account for what they say and how they say it.

We are calling for the following commitments:

1. Protect democracy during an election period 

• Candidates should run honest and transparent campaigns so that everyone can make an informed decision on polling day.

• Political parties should commit to being honest in their campaign materials and not use deceptive campaign practices. 

• Political parties should commit to using AI transparently and responsibly.

2. Politicians must lead by example

• Once elected, politicians should improve public debate: get their facts right, back up what they say with evidence, and correct their mistakes.

• The next government’s Ministerial Code should be made statutory, and require ministers to use public data responsibly.

• The next Parliament must improve its mechanisms to ensure that MPs who fail to behave honestly are held to account.

3. Strengthen society’s resilience to misinformation

• The next government should strengthen online safety legislation to counter harmful misinformation - especially relating to health or when generated by AI.
• Fact checkers are on the frontline in this fight: the next government must ensure that fact checkers have timely access to data from online platforms and search engines about misinformation on their platforms.

• The next government must increase resources for media literacy to give the public the skills to tackle misinformation.

 
Good information really matters in a healthy democracy, and it's never been more important to campaign for honesty and accuracy in politics, and in wider public debate. Full Fact will do that throughout this election campaign, and we encourage our supporters to help get the message to candidates too. Sign up here to find out more about how you can help with this work.