Independent senator Jacqui Lambie has in one breath agreed it's hard to trust politicians in the current environment, while in the next telling the Australian public to trust her.

Key points: Independent analysis revealed public trust in the Australian government has dropped eight points in eight years

Independent analysis revealed public trust in the Australian government has dropped eight points in eight years Senator Jacqui Lambie asked for her secret reasons for scuttling the medevac bill to be taken on trust

Senator Jacqui Lambie asked for her secret reasons for scuttling the medevac bill to be taken on trust But Senator Lambie demanded transparency from the Morrison Government over the sports rorts scandal

The comments came on Monday's episode of Q+A, which was devoted to the issue of trust — more specifically how Australians seemed to now lack trust in their elected officials.

At the end of summer in which the Morrison Government was criticised for its handling of the bushfires and the sports grants scandal, the panel was asked whether trust could potentially have dropped even lower.

The show began with a question from a teenage member of the audience about trust in politicians and was followed by a primary school teacher asking how they could get children to trust elected officials when the teachers themselves did not.

Senator Lambie, appearing on the panel, responded that right now, it was too much to ask.

"Trust comes with leadership and in this country we're lacking leadership," the Tasmanian said.

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"I don't trust a lot of them [politicians] either, so that's not helping.

"I don't know how you teach your children to have trust when my generation and the one below does not trust those people in high office."

Senator Lambie called out the Morrison Government over its handling of the sports rorts scandal, demanding greater transparency.

"If you make a mistake come out and be honest … and go back and fix it," Senator Lambie said.

"Don't say 'there is nothing to see here' when millions of Australians can quite clearly see there is something to see here.

"We have got a report that they won't release. If there is nothing wrong with that report and there is nothing to see here, then release it."

Don't trust them, but trust me

But Senator Lambie then came under fire from an audience member for voting with the Government to repeal the medevac bill, which provided for refugees being held in offshore detention to come to Australia for medical treatment.

The audience member accused the senator of being "sucked into the vortex of secrecy that is our current Government".

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Senator Lambie denied that was the case and used national security to justify her secrecy.

"This has been very tough for me. I asked in Parliament for people to trust me and to give me some time," she said.

"For somebody that likes to get it off their chest straight away … it is really playing on me and I'm really struggling with it.

"But I'm also very aware of the national security implications that come along with that.

"I know I'm asking a big ask and I did it last year standing up, but I just can't say anything.

"I'm asking you to trust me, that I believe the best outcome will come."

That answer disappointed another panellist, Labor MP Clare O'Neil, Shadow Minister for Innovation, Technology and the Future of Work, who said Senator Lambie should be more transparent.

"Jacqui has to be accountable for the decision she's made. We shouldn't have deals made in Parliament where one person knows something that the rest of us can't," Ms O'Neil said.

Labor MP Clare O'Neil called on Senator Lambie to be more transparent. ( ABC )

"I think Jacqui has a bit of credit in the bank here and does conduct herself openly and honestly, and that helps a lot for the public in trusting her, but she's ultimately got to answer for this."

Host Hamish Macdonald called out Senator Lambie for potential hypocrisy, but she doubled down.

"First of all, the sports rorts has no national security attached to it," Senator Lambie said.

"So that's a big thing. I was in the armed forces for 10 years and am very aware of national security and how it works.

"I'm asking the people on the judgement that I've made just to trust me."

Macdonald interjected, asking: "If you ask that of the public, why can't the Government ask the same thing — 'just trust us'?"

Senator Lambie's response was: "Because the Government has no credits left on the board. It's as simple as that."

Independent organisation says trust falling

Audience member Serena Lillywhite, CEO of Transparency International in Australia, said trust in the Australian Government had dropped measurably in recent years.

Her organisation rates the perception of corruption in the public sector in 180 countries, with a score of 100 being clean and zero being the most corrupt.

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She said Australia now scored 77, having dropped eight points in eight years.

"One of the reasons why countries are perceived to be corrupt is when you have a situation where governments are increasingly listening to and influenced by the voices of well-connected individuals and special interest groups," Ms Lillywhite said.

"Our Government is really characterised at the moment, I think, by … listening to these well-connected individuals, powerful special interest groups, who are really trying to influence the way policy is made, the way decisions are made for their own interests and for businesses' interests.

"So you see these very cosy relationships being established. A culture of mateship that can warp the way decisions are made and … people moving straight out the front door of parliament and on to the company payroll."

Ms O'Neil said she felt a "whole generation" did not trust its leaders, which spelled trouble.

"The last stat said 21 per cent of Australian people felt trust in federal members of Parliament. This is an urgent national problem," she said.

Watch the full episode of Q+A on iview or Facebook.