How it is governed

United Kingdom on the 12 axes

MLPGFree-Market CosmopolitanOpen markets, open minds, open borders for ideas.

The United Kingdom is typed MLPG, the Free-Market Cosmopolitan. Authority leans Democratic, with judicial constraints on the executive of 0.94 on a 0-1 scale (2025). Trade leans Global, with a weighted tariff of 1% (2022), and Ownership and Markets lean Private and Free. Welfare leans Shared, with total government spending of 43% of GDP (2025) and public social spending of 23% (2023). Culture leans Multicultural, with an international migrant stock of 17% of the population (2024). Religion sits at the centre, though an established religion exists in part of the territory (2025).

Spain is the nearest country at 89%. Both lean Democratic, Free and Progressive, but Spain sits near the centre on Culture and leans harder toward Cooperation, while the United Kingdom is more Multicultural. See how its politicians and historical figures compare on the page, or take the test to see how close you are to this profile.

Laws and institutionsData 2026-10

Axis by axis

Where the United Kingdom sits

01Ownership+60
PublicPrivate
02Markets+50
PlannedFree
03Welfare-45
SharedSelf-reliant
04Authority-75
DemocraticStrong leader
05Security-65
LibertyOrder
06Structure-50
LocalCentral
07Morality-70
ProgressiveTraditional
08Religion+5
SecularReligious
09Technology-50
EmbraceCaution
10Culture-45
MulticulturalNational identity
11Trade-70
GlobalProtected
12Foreign policy-30
CooperationStrength

Scores come from laws, budgets and institutional indexes, not from polls or the party in power. How country profiles are built

People

Who is closest to how the United Kingdom is governed?

Each percentage compares a person's documented positions with the country's current profile, on the axes both have on record. A high score means their views match the status quo. A low one means they would change more.

Current politicians

Historical figures

Match-ups

Governed most like the United Kingdom

How close are you to the United Kingdom?

Your 12 Axes result ranks the countries governed most like your answers, next to ideologies, figures and politicians.

Take the test

United Kingdom: questions

What is the United Kingdom's type on the 12 axes?

Read from its laws and institutions, the United Kingdom comes out as MLPG (Free-Market Cosmopolitan). The type takes one letter per family of three axes: Economy, State, Society and World. It describes how the country is governed, not what its people think.

Which politician is closest to how the United Kingdom is governed?

Of the current politicians profiled here, John Swinney sits closest to the United Kingdom's policy profile, at 84% on the axes both have on record. Closeness compares documented positions with current laws; it is not a measure of popularity or success.

Which countries are governed most like the United Kingdom?

On the 12 axes, Spain is closest at 89%, followed by Belgium at 88%. The comparison uses the same country profiles as the country match on your 12 Axes result.