Level Of Political Engagement In UK

If citizens do not recognize, respect, or partake in the democratic process, they are regarded as politically disengaged. In the United Kingdom, political retrenchment takes distinct forms and is more common among some populations than among others. This paper addresses the features of various political disengagement measures: selected policy perceptions; degree of participation in political activities; registration for elections; voting; and elected leaders, candidates and Members of Parliament. Youths, in particular, are less likely to register as voters, vote and get elected, and engage in some political events, whereas elderly people have more negative perceptions toward politics. Councilors, candidates as well as Members of Parliament have an average age of over 50 years. Moreover, it was less likely to register people from minority ethnic groups to vote, have them voted into political positions, and convince them to vote. White people are more likely to be politically negative and to take very little part in political action.


Introduction
In Western democracies, decreased voter turnout and confidence in government bodies has raised questions regarding political disengagement. Despite recent boosts, voting attendance in the UK has not returned to the 1950s. According to recent reports, confidence in the government has also fallen. In the first place, the share of those who trusted in the government dropped from 38% in 1986 to 17% in 2013 (Flinders 2015). Politicians' confidence has fluctuated by around 9%. But vote and confidence are not the only indications of political participation. The degree of political involvement in the UK seem far higher, when gauged by other variables.
Citizens elect a government to administer their common affairs in democratic societies. People may affect government decisions through voting for specific candidates or parties, as well as by other means such as lobbying, protesting, and petitioning (Flinders 2015). Democratic or political engagement, involvement, or participation are words used to describe such events.
The word "political participation" will be used in this paper to describe a number of activities. Academics such as David Sanders et al. defines political engagement as: A person (group) can be perceived democratically [politically] engaged in the system of government if he/she (it) is actively involved with the democratic system and related constitutional principles on a behavioral and psychological basis. Positive participation does not imply approval; it may take the form of reform-oriented (nonviolent) dissent and protest (Harris et al. 2018). On the contrary, groups and individuals are disengaged politically if they are not involved in a positive way with the political system (in terms of attitudes and behavior). This term refers to a lack of involvement as well as discontentment or disappointment with politics, as well as disconnection, isolation, and apathy. Persons disengaged or unable to vote are disenfranchised because of nationality restrictions, for example. To ensure that their actions and policies reflect the interests of their constituents, representative governments are thought to require reasonably high levels of democratic participation (Bennet and Kippin 2018). As a consequence, low levels of political participation are thought to have an effect on a government's legitimacy, policies, and the broader political structure. Regardless of the motive of different levels of involvement, political decisions can be more influenced by groups that take part more. As clarified in a 2014 study by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), such disproportionate impact raises concerns: Political inequalities occur if, despite constitutional equality of the democratic process, some individuals or groups are more influential in political decision-making and benefit from unfair results (Flinders 2015). As a result, it undermines a central democratic ideal, namely that all residents should be given equal recognition and equal opportunities to influence shared political decisionmaking irrespective of their status. There is also a threat of unequal participation, which generates a vicious circle in which people cannot participate, as they are disenfranchised from the political system, to disregard their interests and further withdrawal of prominent voices.

Literature Review
Political disengagement is a concept linked to a wide range of approaches and conduct, including political interest, involvement in and ability to participate in formal and informal initiatives. People can be detached in a number of ways, as previously mentioned. As a result, the emphasis of this paper is on a number of indicators, which are stated below (Apostolova et al.

Methodology And Statistical Analysis
How interested in politics: The graph below is representation of the table above indicating the trust people have in the Europeans parliament. The rating ranges from zero which is a no trust at all to 10 which is a complete trust in the European Parliament system. A 5 and 6 rating was highly given showing an average rating which is 29.5 percent of the total population.

Chi-Square Tests
The Chi-Squire test was done to compare the association between the numbers that contacted the politicians or the government officials last 12 months and how they were interested in the politics. The result is significant since the value is less than the designated alpha level.
In this case , the P-value is smaller than the standard alpha value, so we reject the null hypothesis that asserts that the two variables are independent of each other. The data suggest that the number that contacted the politicians or government officials last 12 months is associated with the number interested in the politics.

Discussion
We don't seem to be in the middle of a crisis.. True, voter turnout has decreased, but this has been followed by a rise in non-electoral participation, which cannot be considered the cause of the drop in turnout. As a result, the British participation crisis is limited to the ballot box, and it is not indicative of a broader decrease in citizens' ability to engage with the political system.
These differing trends are completely compatible with the rise in level of academic achievement in the last 20 years. Academic achievement has never had, and proceeds not having, a substantial effect on electoral participation, but its extension cannot be expected to shield turnout levels from other factors that may be leading to their decline. On the other hand, schooling has always been linked with anti-participation, which has grown by more than (moderate) in proportion to the increase in education achievement we would expect.
What signals are there from our research results about the possible variations in the level of political engagement in Britain in the next 20 years, especially when the proportion of educated adults keeps increasing? There is possibly no threat that the less well schooled will become more and more politically marginalized. They do not seem to give any indication that they have any less chances than they are already of being involved in politics outside the voting box. Nonetheless, election remains the only mode of political action in which participation levels amongst groups with varying educational backgrounds approach equality. There is, therefore, an increased risk that the opinions of those who are less knowledgeable will become silent if voting persists its dramatic fall and if non-electoral involvement increases.

Conclusion
Of course, it seems very probable that non-electoral turnout will increase, even when in part, this will depend on the absence of a decrease in personal accomplishment. And a better educated citizens seems more likely to engage in growing government efforts to consult the citizens in public policy development. Nevertheless, most types of political activity are, and are likely to continue in the near future, preserved by a small minority. While Britain will evolve into a more democratic participation in the future, most people will continue to depend on their elected officials to make the best decisions for them for the foreseeable future.