Society is built on trust. It is earned quietly over time, but once it erodes, rebuilding it becomes one of the hardest things to do. Every act of trust begins with a judgement about intent.
There is a quiet shift taking place. It rarely makes the headlines or appears in economic forecasts, yet many people can feel it. Trust, once taken for granted, has become harder to find.
Perhaps that's why this subject matters to me. Some of it comes from what I have observed. Some of it comes from experience. Together they have taught me that it's easy to assume you have trust – until you find yourself questioning it.
We get on with our lives without questioning conversations, decisions or motives. Trust gives us confidence in the people around us and in the organisations we rely on.
It's only when trust disappears that we begin to realise just how much we depended on it. We may start questioning ourselves, asking different questions. Has something changed? Were my assumptions wrong? How did I not see that?
You should be able to trust. You haven't let yourself down.
I've found myself asking those questions – not just through my experiences, but also when looking at the world. Trust feels harder to find. Politics has become more polarised and uncertain. New voices are emerging because many people feel the old ones no longer speak for them.
Whether we call it populism, political realignment or something else, I believe trust sits at the heart of it. We can debate the politics, the personalities and the policies, but beneath them all lies a more fundamental question: who do we trust, and why?
That doesn't mean we should stop asking questions. It's healthy to ask, but it's also important not to lose sight of what's happening in the world. Healthy societies depend on scrutiny and accountability. It's equally important to place trust where integrity has been earned because, once distrust becomes our default position, rebuilding confidence becomes much harder.
Society has changed, shaped by events such as the financial crisis, Covid and increasing political uncertainty. For many, the economic consequences of Brexit have affected livelihoods, businesses and financial security. Whether those effects are viewed positively or negatively, they have contributed to wider questions about trust, leadership and confidence in the institutions that shape our lives.
Each has challenged the trust people place in institutions and one another. In today's society, we expect more, but we also question more. We're less trusting and slower to give honest people the benefit of the doubt.
I often wonder whether Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic marked a turning point. Perhaps they didn't create a crisis of trust, but they exposed one that had been building for years. Whatever the cause, many people seem less confident in institutions, less certain about who to believe, and increasingly doubtful that decisions are made in the interests of people rather than profit.
This is more than a personal impression. International surveys have consistently found that public trust in governments, businesses, the media and other major institutions has weakened in recent years, reflecting concerns shared across many democracies. The 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer echoes this wider trend.
Trust hasn't disappeared altogether, but it certainly feels more fragile than it once did. We're simply having to look harder for it.
Perhaps that's one reason we're seeing the rise of populism and growing political uncertainty around the world. When trust in established institutions weakens, people naturally begin looking elsewhere.
That matters because trust is one of the few things that holds society together. Without it, co-operation becomes harder, relationships become more strained and confidence fades. Rebuilding trust takes time, consistency and a clear sense of intent.
The thing about trust is this: when it disappears, you'll know about it. And once it's gone, there are no shortcuts to getting it back. Perhaps that's why it's so important to pay attention.
