Minister McGrath welcomes the publication of the inaugural OECD Trust Survey 2021

The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Michael McGrath, T.D. has welcomed the publication of the Organisation for Economic Development (OECD) Survey on the Drivers of Trust in Public Institutions.

Ireland is one of 22 countries that participated in the 2021 survey which was part-funded by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. The survey was carried out on behalf of Ireland by the Central Statistics Office. This broad-ranging international survey examines trust levels, satisfaction with public services, expectations and behaviour along with action on long-term policies and global challenges.

Trust is the foundation upon which the legitimacy of democratic institutions rest and is crucial in ensuring the success of a wide range of public policies that depend on behavioural responses from the public. Notwithstanding the high level compliance with public health responses during the pandemic, longer term trust is needed to help Governments tackle societal challenges such as climate change, ageing populations, and the changing labour markets.

The Minister stated that:

"The findings of this survey will help bolster activities already under way in Ireland to reinforce trust in Government. Initiatives such as this provide an effective mechanism to measure public sentiment concerning Government and its institutions. It assists public servants to better understand where efforts need to be focussed in order to strengthen trust in public organisations.

“My Department is progressing an ambitious programme of reform to enhance trust in Government and public institutions and to ensure transparency and integrity in the conduct of public business that will further increase trust in public institutions”.

Notes to Editor

The inaugural 2021 Trust Survey has found that governments are performing satisfactorily with a majority of the respondents across 22 countries satisfied with their national healthcare, education systems and public services provision.

Trust in national government is however relatively low on average across OECD countries with local government and civil servants faring slightly better.

In addition, a majority of respondents trust the courts and the police in their country while support is relatively low for political parties, legislative institutions and the media. Survey outcomes for Ireland demonstrate real level of confidence in our public institutions with 67% for An Garda and 65% for the Courts and Legal System, while a 62% trust score in Civil Servants compares well with the OECD average of 50%.

In addition:

80% of Irish respondents believe that information they need regarding administrative procedures is easily available, which is a very positive figure and compares well with the 22 countries that participated in the survey and a 65% OECD average figure.
76% of respondents believe that their application for a Government benefit or service would be treated fairly which was higher than the other participating countries and the overall average of 70%.
65% respondents believe that personal data they share with a public agency is exclusively used for legitimate purposes, which was significantly above the other participating countries and the OECD average figure of 50%.
58% of respondents believe that Government institutions will be prepared to protect people’s lives in the event of a new pandemic, which is exceeded by Denmark and Luxembourg, with the average OECD figure of 50%.
42% of respondents believe that public employees would treat rich and poor equally which matches the average OECD figure with the highest outcome in Denmark and the Netherlands at 58%.

ENDS