Over 90 MPs sign amendment to force rethink of ‘broken’ UK voting system [updated]
Over 90 MPs sign amendment to force rethink of ‘broken’ UK voting system
More than 90 MPs have signed an amendment to the Representation of the People Bill, calling for the Government to get to grips with the ‘broken’ First Past the Post voting system. Tabled by Alex Sobel MP, Chair of the APPG for Fair Elections, the amendment would push the Government to set up a ‘National Commission on Electoral Reform’.
The amendment will be published on 20 May ahead of the Bill’s expected return to the Commons in June. More MPs are expected to add their support to the proposal in the coming weeks. A full list of current signatories is below:
Alex Sobel
Ellie Chowns
Lisa Smart
Debbie Abrahams
Luke Akehurst
Fleur Anderson
Jess Asato
Dr Scott Arthur
Richard Baker
Lee Barron
Lorraine Beavers
Siân Berry
Chris Bloore
Olivia Blake
Julia Buckley
Ruth Cadbury
Danny Chambers
Bambos Charalambous
Lizzi Collinge
Tom Collins
Chris Coghlan
Dr Beccy Cooper
Andrew Cooper
Stella Creasy
Chris Curtis
Paul Davies
Marsha De Cordova
Josh Dean
Carla Denyer
Jim Dickson
Anna Dixon
Sorcha Eastwood
Cat Eccles
Florence Eshalomi
Richard Foord
Will Forster
Dr Allison Gardner
Andrew George
Olly Glover
Sarah Hall
Helen Hayes
Chris Hinchliff
Alison Hume
Liz Jarvis
Ruth Jones
Kevin McKenna
James MacCleary
Andy MacNae
Helen Maguire
Layla Moran
Rachael Maskell
Abtisam Mohamed
Edward Morello
Grahame Morris
Tom Morrison
Perran Moon
Luke Myer
James Naish
Connor Naismith
Samantha Niblett
Noah Law
Simon Opher
Darren Paffey
Manuela Perteghella
Lee Pitcher
Jo Platt
Peter Prinsley
Richard Quigley
Adrian Ramsay
Andrew Ranger
Mike Reader
Jenny Riddell-Carpenter
Hannah Spencer
Euan Stainbank
Steve Darling
Fred Thomas
Jon Trickett
Matt Turmaine
Valerie Vaz
Vikki Slade
Roz Savage
Cat Smith
Will Stone
Mohammad Yasin
Nadia Whittome
Michelle Welsh
Steve Witherden
Martin Wrigley
The move follows a set of elections widely hailed by experts as representing the end of Britain’s traditional two-party system. Reacting to the election results Luke Tryl, More In Common, said “Our politics has become way more fragmented… I can pronounce death for the two-party system”. This follows a February letter, signed by 50 leading academics, warning the Government that in a multi-party age First Past the Post is “creating new risks for Britain”. In his post-elections analysis, Sir John Curtice said the results “raise questions about whether first-past-the-post will continue to benefit the Conservatives and Labour in future. Rather, they have shown that the system is colour blind in how it operates”.
Hannah White, Director of the Institute for Government, said “These elections have provided further evidence that the fracturing of British politics is not a temporary aberration – as the Conservative and Labour parties appear to have been hoping – but a phenomenon which is here to stay… This could raise the public salience of long-standing calls for electoral reform in a way not previously seen in the UK.”
Alex Sobel MP said: “The Prime Minister in his reset speech said ‘a return to the status quo would not be enough for people.’ First Past the Post is one of the biggest examples of a broken status quo in UK politics. A very modest part of any reset would be to accept and announce a National Commission for Electoral Reform. We’re inviting parliamentary colleagues to join this common-sense call to take a fresh look at how Parliament is elected in modern Britain.”
Amendment wording
The Terms of Reference for the National Commission on Electoral Reform can be found here and have been produced by the APPG for Fair Elections in consultation with a wide range of constitutional experts.
“Duty to Report on the feasibility of establishing a National Commission on Electoral Reform
Report on feasibility of establishing a National Commission
Within three months of the passing of this Act, the Secretary of State must publish a report (“the report”) on the feasibility of establishing a National Commission on Electoral Reform (“the Commission”).
The Secretary of State must lay the report before Parliament.
The purpose of the Commission is to:
(a) review the operation of the voting system for elections to the House of Commons; and
(b) make any recommendations for reform to ensure that the voting system is fair, representative, and capable of sustaining public confidence in democratic outcomes
The Commission must be independent of Government in the exercise of its functions, must be guided by expert and public involvement, and must publish its final recommendations within twelve months of launch.
Member’s explanatory statement: This new clause would require the Secretary of State to report on the feasibility of establishing a new body known as the National Commission on Electoral Reform. This body would report on the operation of the voting system for elections to the House of Commons, and make recommendations for reform to ensure that the voting system is fair, representative and sustains public confidence.”