By voting Yes in the referendum on AV on 5 May 2011, the British public will be voting to give themselves a voice. AV isn’t just a slight tweak to the way we count votes. It’s an opportunity to make a truly historic leap towards real and effective democracy.
With a date now set for a referendum on switching the electoral system to the Alternative Vote, a debate will no doubt rage inside both the Labour and Conservative parties as to how they should campaign.
Left Foot Forward understands from a source close to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister that the timetable for the promised referendum on AV will be announced next week, and that the referendum itself is most likely to be scheduled to coincide with the May 2011 Local Elections.
Without wide changes in party leadership, membership and party procedures, electoral reform will not result in our representatives being any more proportionate.
The Take Back Parliament protest in London today demanded “Fair Votes Now” as around 1,000 marched from Parliament Square to the scene of the Liberal Democrat Executive meeting.
Labour’s manifesto promise for “a free vote in Parliament on reducing the voting age to 16” has once again forced the issue of voting age back into the news.
In the UK the luckiest fifth of voters have more than 33 times more power than the unluckiest 20%. This is a far more uneven distribution than household income.
The Tories chose a scorched earth policy rather than trust in their arguments on first-past-the-post (FPTP) or in the judgment of the on to the British people.
There is precious time left before Parliament is dissolved to debate these plans. We are now in a situation where all parties are agreed on the need for reform.
Nick Clegg sets out four conditional “tests” for Liberal Democrat support of a minority government. They are not as progressive as they look at first sight.
