Dundee LibDems Support Campaign For Democracy (Dundee Liberal Democrats)

Dundee Liberal Democrats <info@dundeelibdems.org.uk>

Dundee LibDems Support Campaign For Democracy

May 26, 2005 8:14 PM

Dundee Liberal Democrats say electoral reform vital to a healthy democracy

Dundee Liberal Democrats have given their backing to the Campaign for Democracy. The campaign, run by The Independent newspaper, calls on the Labour government to address the issue of electoral reform. The 2005 general election produced a weak democratic mandate. The Labour majority of 67 equates to 55.1% of seats. However, this was based on only 35.2% of the UK vote. Indeed, Labour were supported by just 9.6m of the 44.6m voters and, with the election turnout standing at just 61.3%, the government received the support of only 21.6% of the electorate.

Labour could win seats more easily than any other party. Labour required 22,877 votes per MP, compared to 44,521 for the Conservatives and a staggering 96,378 for the Liberal Democrats.

In their 1997 election manifesto, Labour proposed looking at reform of the electoral system. In 1998, they commissioned the Jenkins report, which proposed a more proportional system for elections. However, 7 years on, Labour are yet to address the issue and now even suggest there is no appetite for such reform. Annette, along with thousands of others, disagrees and has signed up to The Independent's campaign and another run by the pressure group Make My Vote Count (www.makemyvotecount.org.uk), and urges others to do likewise.

Dundee Liberal Democrat Council Group Leader, Cllr Fraser Macpherson, said, "It is vital for the sake of our democracy that every individual voter believes their vote matters and can make a difference, not just those who live in marginal seats where the vote is close".

"The First Past the Post system is stuck in the nineteenth century - its time for a fair electoral system."