Britain's trust in science falls 12 points since 2020

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 11 Oct, 03:48 · Archive

Britons' strong confidence in science has fallen by 12 percentage points since 2020, a major survey finds.

Britain's trust in science has fallen sharply, with strong public confidence declining by 12 percentage points in five years. According to the Wellcome Trust's global survey of 143,620 people across 140 countries, only 51 per cent of Britons now say they trust science 'a lot', down from 63 per cent in 2020.

The research reveals significant differences in whom the public trusts. Six in ten people in the UK say they trust doctors and nurses 'a lot', compared with 34 per cent for scientists and 14 per cent for the Government. The findings form part of the Wellcome Global Monitor 2026, drawn from interviews with 1,007 people over 15 across Britain, alongside earlier surveys of 1,000 people in 2018 and 2020.

The decline raises fresh questions about the lasting impact of the Covid response. Mark Henderson from the Wellcome Trust acknowledged that uncertainty had not always been properly explained during the pandemic, but stressed that the research could not establish whether the pandemic response was directly responsible for the fall in confidence.

How it is being reported

• Trust in science falls as COVID-era confidence fades, global survey findsThe retreat has potentially far-reaching consequences for public health as vaccination rates decline and preventable diseases resurge.The Japan Times · 11 Oct, 01:48
• Britain's trust in science plunges as Covid response comes under scrutinyBritain's trust in science has plummeted with a major new survey revealing a 12-percentage-point fall in strong public confidence in just five years. Despite the “follow the science” mantra during the Covid pandemic, those ‘very confident in science” have fallen by 12 percentage points since 2020. Only 51 per cent of Britons now say they trust science "a lot", compared with 63 per cent in 2020, according to the world’s largest survey of public trust in science, commissioned by medical research charity Wellcome. The research also highlights differences in whom people trust. Six in ten people…GB News · 11 Oct, 00:01

In this story: Wellcome Trust · Britain · Mark Henderson

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