Petition · past parliament
Ban politicians from making false or misleading statements to the public
Rejected
10 signatures
What the petition asks
Why don't we hold our leaders to as high a standard as the people who sell us payday loans and hand cream? By making it a criminal offence for MPs to lie to the public, we can finally bring some honesty to our public discourse.
In the UK, it is against the law for a company to make a false or misleading claim in an advertisement. We have a body, the Advertising Standards Agency, dedicated to making sure they don't. As a result, UK advertising is largely free of falsehoods.
In contrast, politicians of all parties can simply make up facts and figures, knowing that even if they're disputed, the waters of our national conversation will be muddied. The risk of an embarrassing court case would put paid to this tactic.
In contrast, politicians of all parties can simply make up facts and figures, knowing that even if they're disputed, the waters of our national conversation will be muddied. The risk of an embarrassing court case would put paid to this tactic.
Why it was rejected
There was already a petition about this issue. Duplicates are rejected so signatures collect in one place.
Timeline
| 18 Jan 2016 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 21 Jan 2016 | Rejected by the Petitions Committee |
Key facts
Signatures
10
Status
Rejected
Rejected
21 Jan 2016
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.