Voters don’t understand politicians’ jargon, says Mencap

MOST people can’t understand language politicians use in their manifestos, according to a survey. Nine-out-of-10 weren’t able to answer half or more phrases correctly, while seven-out-of-10 couldn’t explain more than three meanings

By Mike Brooke

MOST people can’t understand much of the language politicians use in their manifestos, according to a survey.

Nine-out-of-10 weren’t able to answer half or more phrases correctly, according to the poll by Mencap. Nearly seven-out-of-10 couldn’t explain more than three meanings.

Now the learning disability charity has started a Get My Vote’ campaign calling on politicians to stop using jargon’ in the run-up to the General Election and tell it like it is.’

“It’s time politicians used language people can understand,” said campaign manager Esther Foreman.

“The fact that nine-out-of-10 people don’t understand reinforces the need for an end to the jargon surrounding Westminster so that they feel informed enough to vote.”

The Mencap survey took 12 phrases from manifestos, including the three main political parties, and asked people what they meant.

One example was progressive consensus,’ which some thought meant being ripped off.’

Another was waste production stream,’ believed to mean a river flowing full of rubbish’, while economic dynamism’ was said to mean a flash git who fiddles the accounts’!