Comments on: Proportional voting and crime http://blog.localdemocracy.org.uk/2009/02/06/proportional-voting-and-crime/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed Promoting innovation and a conversational local politics Wed, 28 Dec 2011 13:58:24 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Peter Cruickshank http://blog.localdemocracy.org.uk/2009/02/06/proportional-voting-and-crime/comment-page-1/#comment-727 Peter Cruickshank Thu, 22 Oct 2009 07:16:55 +0000 http://blog.localdemocracy.org.uk/?p=595#comment-727 Well - Scotland should be a good place to test the theory out! The first local government elections were held under PR (STV) in 2007 - the result was to leave Labour with majority control over only 2 councils, and all the others with minority/coalition administrations. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_local_elections,_2007 No fringe parties in play so far, unless you count the LibDems, and the sky hasn't fallen in yet. Well – Scotland should be a good place to test the theory out!

The first local government elections were held under PR (STV) in 2007 – the result was to leave Labour with majority control over only 2 councils, and all the others with minority/coalition administrations.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_local_elections,_2007

No fringe parties in play so far, unless you count the LibDems, and the sky hasn’t fallen in yet.

]]> By: Peppone http://blog.localdemocracy.org.uk/2009/02/06/proportional-voting-and-crime/comment-page-1/#comment-79 Peppone Fri, 13 Feb 2009 23:01:23 +0000 http://blog.localdemocracy.org.uk/?p=595#comment-79 you can end up with elections where fringe parties can play king maker a lot more than fptp more pork barrel politics where bigger parties pay off junior partners you can end up with elections where fringe parties can play king maker a lot more than fptp

more pork barrel politics where bigger parties pay off junior partners

]]> By: cased http://blog.localdemocracy.org.uk/2009/02/06/proportional-voting-and-crime/comment-page-1/#comment-78 cased Thu, 12 Feb 2009 09:02:02 +0000 http://blog.localdemocracy.org.uk/?p=595#comment-78 Three answers: 1. Compromise/coalition (though you could play this as an upside just as easily.) 2. Only when so few people turn out at the polling station in the current system that it crashes and burns, or when first past the post doesn't serve the needs of the party in power will you seen any impetus to change the system.... politics as usual will always take precedent as issues of voters' concern will always be prioritised in order to maintain the voting majorities and the status quo. The urgency isnt there. 3. It might do - but to have PR at local level without having it at national level would further weaken the credibility of the elected systems as a whole, weakening local opposition through more coalitions, whilst allowing First Past The Post to continue creating overly strong bias towards whoever is in power at national level. One more point: 1. Electoral system reform is the pretty dry and unglamorous end of a fairly dry and unglamorous constitutional reform conversation. Those of us who like to talk about it have probably in some way been motivated to engage with the issue through understanding just how bankrupt our current system is and the extent to which we need to reform it. Until more people can be inspired to engage on this as a matter of some urgency, beyond existing circles, then we're not going to see real change any time soon. There are simply more urgent matters to attend to. The problems across the system at national and local levels are well known, and PR is only one possibility in a myriad of options. To introduce it without a serious redesign of current systems would be putting a sticking plaster on a broken arm. Three answers:

1. Compromise/coalition (though you could play this as an upside just as easily.)

2. Only when so few people turn out at the polling station in the current system that it crashes and burns, or when first past the post doesn’t serve the needs of the party in power will you seen any impetus to change the system…. politics as usual will always take precedent as issues of voters’ concern will always be prioritised in order to maintain the voting majorities and the status quo. The urgency isnt there.

3. It might do – but to have PR at local level without having it at national level would further weaken the credibility of the elected systems as a whole, weakening local opposition through more coalitions, whilst allowing First Past The Post to continue creating overly strong bias towards whoever is in power at national level.

One more point:

1. Electoral system reform is the pretty dry and unglamorous end of a fairly dry and unglamorous constitutional reform conversation. Those of us who like to talk about it have probably in some way been motivated to engage with the issue through understanding just how bankrupt our current system is and the extent to which we need to reform it. Until more people can be inspired to engage on this as a matter of some urgency, beyond existing circles, then we’re not going to see real change any time soon. There are simply more urgent matters to attend to. The problems across the system at national and local levels are well known, and PR is only one possibility in a myriad of options. To introduce it without a serious redesign of current systems would be putting a sticking plaster on a broken arm.

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