There was a referendum back in 2011 to change the first past the post system, but instead of it being a PR based system, the UK voted on AV which nobody really understood, wasn't properly explained to the voting public and not surprisingly it got chucked out. But yes, in principle, there needs to be a much better way of representing the actual number of votes cast, rather than the way the constituency seats shape the numbers in Parliament. For example in London there's something like 5.5 million voters and almost half of them vote Labour. So that's 2.5 million people who want to see a Labour Govt, but out in the posh sticks of places like the Cotswolds and Oxfordshire, the Tories can gain as many seats on the back of a few hundred thousand votes. That said, I think it's healthy for Parliament to have representation from parties like SNP, Sinn Fein, Greens etc, even if there's not huge numbers of actual votes cast for them.
You might get a decent turnout if so many votes weren’t wasted but I doubt the average bloke on the street really gives a **** and wouldn’t be much likelier to vote under a more representative system. It would still be fairer if the number of MPs more closely match the share of the vote. Loads of systems to choose from and we have arguably the ****test of all.
I think thats fine. We want a government that represents the different types of communities around the country. If it were just by sheer numbers, all a party would have to do is campaign in London, Birmingham and Manchester and BOOM, they get in. And Londoners live in their own little ******ed bubble with no clue of life outside the nations filthy capital.
I work near a big jewish area and there are a few hostage posters around which over time have been keyed which is ****ty but inevitable. Some nonce has gone and stuck a load of Palestine flag stickers over the faces since I last saw them.
In Norway, regions vote and the % of each party goes to the Parliament representing that region. So, for example, Cornwall votes in a GE, votes 20% Tory, 16% Lib, 10% Lab. Cornwall has 20 seats, the Tories go to Parliament with 20% etc etc. Then regions receive a representation, cities don't get overwhelming majorities of votes and we still get major parties.
Reading through the comments this morning, I think the safety of MP's has been missed in all this. Two MP's have lost their lives due to lunatics in this country, another MP has had his offices burnt down and has to wear a stab vest, and countless threats have been made to MP's and their families. So although the vote might not make any difference to Netanyahu, it makes enough difference to the nut jobs in this country, I expect if the war carries over into Ramadan with no release of hostages, the UK will become an even more dangerous place for those that serve our democracy.
Yeah, the context in which Lindsay Hoyle said he allowed that Labour amendment was based on the wording 'collective punishment' i.e. a war crime, that the SNP tabled and he felt that those Labour MPs who hadn't supported a ceasefire before and had been harrassed and abused, would also likely not feel able to support the SNP motion, even if they did now support the ethos of a ceasefire. So I can see why he tried to make the bill more inclusive If anything though, it demonstrates the trudgery of Parliamentary machinations and how fractious it can be when some MPs feel that they have been hard done by.
Personally I got no problem with the Speaker, he did what he did, he apologised, they should move on, anyone that wants to make an issue of it is just wasting parliamentry time, and we've had enough of that wasted since covid.
Had to laugh, the Tories the number 1 breakers of parliamentary rules complaining, alongside the SNP who don't even want to be there. Stfu the pair of you ffs.
No wonder our MP's are worried... Quote: 'A left-wing anarchist has been found guilty of preparing acts of terrorism by compiling and sharing a bomb-making manual, after declaring that he wanted to kill at least 50 politicians.' https://news.sky.com/story/left-win...fter-declaring-he-wanted-to-kill-mps-13072775 please log in to view this image Hopefully they stick him away for a very liong time.
