Poll reform calls fail to win the vote - The Worcester Observer

Poll reform calls fail to win the vote

Worcester Editorial 28th Nov, 2019   0

CALLS for city council chiefs to lobby the Government to introduce a new voting system for General Elections have been rejected by city council chiefs despite cross party support.

Green Party councillor Majory Bisset tabled proposals to change from the current ‘first past the post’ arrangement to proportional representation at a meeting last Tuesday (November 19).

December’s General Election, like all before it will see the candidate with the most votes win the seat and become the MP for the constituency.

But Coun Bisset said the system was to blame for a ‘democratic deficit’ in Worcester and called for action to be taken.




“I support all of those people who still turn out to vote despite knowing their vote would be ‘wasted’,” she said.

“People think a vote for a smaller party is a wasted vote.”


Coun Bisset said a move to a form of proportional representation would boost turnout and highlighted the single transferable vote which was used in the House of Commons earlier this month to elect a new speaker.

According to Coun Bisset, had the 2019 local election results been replicated city-wide, the make-up of the council would be 13 Conservatives, nine Labour, seven Green Party councillors, three Liberal Democrats and three UKIP councillors.

Labour Coun Matt Lamb was among a number in his party who supported the motion and highlighted the flaws in the current system.

“First Past the Post works very well when you have two parties, when you go past that it becomes increasingly unhelpful,” he said.

“There is a danger that in ‘safe seats’ councillors could become complacent if no other parties believe they could win there. It would be interesting to use this in Worcester.”

All of the Conservatives voted against the bid and Coun Louise Griffiths said while she believed the current system was broken, she didn’t believe proportional representation was the answer.

Her view was shared by council leader Coun Marc Bayliss who disagreed with the idea turnout would increase under a different voting system.

“We would end up in the chamber with people representing very extreme views, which I don’t think deserve a public platform and I worry such a move would allow that,” he said.

“However you get a council formed through an election it’s about the culture of the people who work within in. If there is a willingness to work across the aisle we can achieve the consensus needed.”

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