Four in 10 people are "alienated" from Britain's political parties and say they will not consider voting for any of them, according to new research.

Young adults are even more "disengaged" from the party system, with 46 per cent of under-30s saying "none of the above" when presented with a list of the parties. Although the polling does not mean people are apathetic about politics, the anti-sleaze watchdog which commissioned it believes the findings pose worrying questions about the future of democracy in Britain.

Surprisingly, the survey suggests public scepticism is not confined to the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats but extends to the smaller parties likely to win "protest votes". People were given the option of choosing the three main parties; the UK Independence Party, the Green Party, the British National Party, Respect, another un-named party; no party or saying "don't know." The survey of 1,900 people was carried out by TNS-BRMB for the Committee on Standards in Public Life.

Lord (Paul) Bew, the crossbench peer who chairs the committee, told The Independent today: "One particular cause for concern from the research is the number of people, especially young people, who feel disconnected from the political system and political parties."

the anti-sleaze watchdog which commissioned it believes the findings pose worrying questions about the future of democracy in Britain.

They're worried that we'll get it?