Leaders Battle Over Alternative Vote Referendum Campaign (AV)
18 Apr 2011 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: Ed Millband, john reid, may 5th 2011, Mr Clegg
Today an unlikely alliance was formed as David Cameron and Labour former Home Secretary, John Reid, shared a platform to warn how changing the way Britain elects its MPs, would end the historic principle of “one person, one vote”. Prime Minister David Cameron outlines three reasons he believes Britain should not adopt the Alternative Vote system. David Cameron campaigns against AV Labour’s John Reid on the campaign for No to the AV voting reform referendum Labour\’s John Reid
Mr Cameron said that he felt in his “gut” that AV was wrong
“Politics shouldn’t be some mind-bending exercise. It’s about what you feel in your gut, about the values you hold dear and the beliefs you instinctively have. And I just feel it, in my gut, that AV is wrong.”
The Prime Minister went on to explain how AV “is obscure, unfair, expensive and it could mean people who come third in elections will end up winning.” John Reid criticised the ‘Yes to AV’ campaign, supported by his party’s leader, Ed Miliband, for trying to “change the rules of the game” to make up for bad electoral results. Lord Reid suggested that we could learn a few things from the sportsmen and women who represent out country:
“When they lose a contest, they pick themselves up, get back into the game and come back to fight another day. They don’t moan on about moving the goalposts to make things easier next time. And they don’t expect gold medals for finishing second, third or fourth. The answer for losing parties is to work harder to win the confidence of the voters, not to introduce a system that tries to change losers into winners by some magical complicated mathematical formula.”
Mr Cameron urged people to get out and vote No:
“The biggest danger right now is that Britain sleepwalks into this second-rate system, waking up on May 6th with a voting system that damages our democracy permanently. We must not let that happen. So get out there and fight, and get out there and win.”
Lord Reid concluded:
“It’s your vote. Your right to a fair say – a say and a vote equal to everyone else. Don’t let them take that right away. Vote No on the 5th of May.”
With less than three weeks to the May 5 referendum on adopting the alternative vote (AV) system for parliamentary elections, the Prime Minister acknowledged that millions of voters had yet to engage with the issue. His comments came as Labour leader Ed Miliband accused the No campaign of spreading “groundless fears” that AV would lead to the rise of extremist parties like the British National Party. The two leaders were fronting rival No and Yes events as they attempted to inject new life into a campaign that could have important consequences for all three major political parties. Mr Cameron said that AV was “obscure, unfair and expensive” and could mean that “people who come third in elections will end up winning”. However, he said that with millions of voters showing interest in the issue, there was a risk that the Yes campaign could win by default. “The biggest danger right now is that Britain sleepwalks into this second rate system, waking up on May 6 with a voting system that damages our democracy,” he said. Mr Cameron sought to distance himself from the No campaign attacks on Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg. “I don’t run the No campaign, I run the Conservative No campaign,” he said. “I certainly don’t condone any personal attacks on anyone in this campaign.”
Meanwhile Mr Miliband, who was also appearing on a cross-party platform, urged voters not to use the referendum as an opportunity to give Mr Clegg a “kicking”.
“The chance to send a message to this Conservative-led Government lies in the elections that are taking place in English local government, in Scotland and Wales,” he said. This referendum is not about Nick Clegg, it’s not about David Cameron, it’s not about me. It is a chance to have a better politics in Britain.”
Our current tried and tested voting system gives everyone one vote and delivers clear outcomes. The Alternative Vote is a complicated, expensive and unfair system that gives some people more votes than others. It might sound like a small change but the danger is in the detail – it’s a politicians’ fix. Governments would be selected through backroom deals and people would have no control over where their vote goes. It should be voters that decide who the best candidate is, not the voting system. Defend one person, one vote. Vote NO to AV on 5 May.
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