Spitting, swearing: Britons getting ruder

Spitting, swearing: Britons getting ruder

Britons are ruder than they were a decade ago and almost three-quarters of some 3,000 respondents think manners should be taught at school, according to the ITV poll on Monday.

Another third believe bad manners are the catalyst for much of the anti-social behavior in Britain, added the the poll.

More than 90 percent of respondents believe parents are failing to ensure their children learn proper manners and that bad behavior of celebrities and footballers are setting a poor example for impressionable youngsters.

Spitting and swearing are the most offensive behaviors, it found, while queue-jumping and not saying "please" or "thank you" are other main gripes.

"I suppose it's part of the breakdown in society -- the fact that we stopped having respect for figures in authority partly because those in authority didn't command it," etiquette coach Diana Mather told.

The head of the Campaign for Courtesy, broadcaster Esther Rantzen, said a lack of discipline was also to blame.

"I think things should go back, not to the old deference, not to groveling, not to any of that but just to feeling respect, because I think that would make everyone's life more pleasant,"she told the program.

2008-04-29