Press release: UK’s first People-Power Index reveals best MPs

Press Release from Change.org

*** EMBARGO 00.01am Wednesday 4 December 2019***

The UK’s first People-Power Index informs voters about how “people-powered” their last MP was. The ranking, from Change.org, reveals the top MPs who listened to, and engaged with, their constituents over the last two years.

The Top 20 MPs

1	Wayne David	Caerphilly	Labour
2	Justin Tomlinson	North Swindon	Conservative
3	Caroline Nokes	Romsey and Southampton North	Conservative
4	Jim McMahon	Oldham West and Royton	Labour
5	Tracey Crouch	Chatham and Aylesford	Conservative
6	Owen Smith *Not re-standing	Pontypridd	Labour
7	Ian Austin *Not re-standing	Dudley North	Independent
8	Virendra Sharma	Ealing, Southall	Labour
9	Nigel Evans	Ribble Valley	Conservative
10	David Hanson	Delyn	Labour
11	Steve Brine	Winchester	Conservative
12	Alex Cunningham	Stockton North	Labour
13	Geraint Davies	Swansea West	Labour
14	Jessica Morden	Newport East	Labour
15	Mark Tami	Alyn and Deeside	Labour
16	Danielle Rowley	Midlothian	Labour
17	Gerald Jones	Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney	Labour
18	Anneliese Dodds	Oxford East	Labour
19	Chi Onwurah	Newcastle upon Tyne Central	Labour
20	Alistair Burt*Not re-standing	North East Bedfordshire	Conservative

Taking the whole Index of 650 MPs, female MPs slightly outperform male MPs. Despite only holding 32% of seats in Parliament, women account for 36% of the top 50 MPs. Men are ranked lowest, making up 82% bottom 50 MPs.

Along party lines, two-thirds of the top 50 MPs are Labour, and almost three-quarters of the bottom 50 are Conservative MPs. Perhaps unsurprisingly, eight of the MPs for the top 10 marginal constituencies at the last General Election are in the top half of the Index, suggesting they work harder to earn their votes. 

Commenting on the launch of the People-Power Index, Kajal Odedra, UK Executive Director of Change.org, said: 

“Unlike most jobs, there’s no job description for being an MP. So for the MPs putting themselves forward again, and when we’re looking at candidates to see who’s best for the job, how are we judging what a “good” MP looks like?

That’s why Change.org has created the UK’s first People-Power Index.  From years of working with ordinary people to campaign on issues that matter to the public, a big motivation for starting petitions is that they don’t feel heard by those in power.  So we’ve judged that being a “good” MP is about openness and responsiveness to constituents. Trust in politics is strengthened when it is open, transparent and the public are genuinely listened to.  

We want voters to check how their MP ranks when making their mind up whether to re-elect their last MP or not, and want the People-Power Index to inspire the new MPs to prioritise their relationship with their constituents.”

The Index was calculated using ten data sources from the last Parliament (2017-2019) which measure the following, in priority order:

1.An MP’s availability to their constituents. This looks at how an MP is available online (email and social media), offline (holding “surgeries” in your local area and a caseworker), and whether an MP is distracted by a second (or third) job.

2.An MP’s participation in Parliament. This looks at an MP’s participation record for voting in Parliament, so that their constituency is counted when new laws are passed, and how often an MP raises issues from their constituency in Parliament.

3.How an MP listens to the public. An MP’s top priority is their constituency, but they also have a responsibility to the wider general public to bring political attention to mass public campaigns and priority issues by discussing them in Parliament. 

See all MPs ranked in the People-Power Index here.

NOTES

 • Contact Amy Lockwood, UK Communications Director at Change.org
alockwood@change.org / 07802 725297 for any further information.

 • The People-Power Index is available here. You have permission to re-publish the Index table on your website or in print. You must credit Change.org and not make any alterations.

 • Detail on the methodology can be found here.

 • Kajal Odedra, UK Executive Director of Change.org, is available for interview.

 • Regional or local analysis is available, please email alockwood@change.org detailing the constituencies or area you would like analysis for.

 • Change.org is the world’s largest social change platform with over 300 million users in 196 countries, including 17 million in the UK. Change.org empowers anyone, anywhere, to create the change they want to see by starting campaigns, mobilising supporters, and working with decision makers to drive solutions.