Public 'Sceptical' Of Public Appointments

Although awareness of public appointments remains low in the UK, there have been some improvements since 2000 according to research by MORI. The research, commissioned by the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA), shows one in five people (21%) say they have confidence in the system in place in this country.

There is strong support (71%) for a system of regulation to be in place, although the majority are unaware that OCPA already fulfils this role (as found during focus groups among the UK general public).

The process receives more positive feedback from people who have some experience of the system whether from the regulation aspect or applicants themselves (both successful and unsuccessful). The problem of a lack of public awareness is mentioned across the board however.

There is widespread support for increased diversity on the boards of public bodies to sufficiently reflect the community which they serve. However, the general public as well as the more involved respondents are keen to stress that diversity shouldn't be seen as tokenistic or at the expense of merit. Two-thirds (67%) say Ministerial Public Appointments should be based on merit.

Technical details

This research, conducted by the MORI Social Research Institute comprised both quantitative and qualitative methodologies and took place between September and December 2004.

1,310 interviews were conducted (from a nationally representative quota sample) face to face in-home with UK adults aged 15+ and weighted to the population profile. The survey covered 198 random sampling points in the UK and fieldwork took place between 18 and 23 November 2004. Further general public research included nine focus groups across the UK during November 2004.

Qualitative research was also conducted among the Involved Public, including twelve depth interviews in December 2004 with successful and unsuccessful appointees and disability consultants. Five focus groups were completed with Independent Assessors and recruitment consultants between September and December 2004.