A huge global study finds ample evidence of a worrying ‘democratic recession’ since 1973 – leaving ever greater opportunities for populists “Across the globe, democracy is in a state of malaise.” That is the bleak assessment of a report from the Centre for the Future of Democracy at Cambridge University. Here in the UK, three out of five of us – 60.3% of the voting population – are unhappy with the functioning of our democracy. The last time we saw comparable levels of dissatisfaction with the way we are governed was during the “winter of discontent” in 1978-79. And there is plenty more bad news where that came from – bad news for democracy across the globe. Continue reading...