You did it: Parliament is going to debate adopting fair votesEarlier this year, the scale of public anger at our broken voting system was revealed. Despite no General Election being on the horizon at the time – and starting from scratch – voters shattered expectations:...Posted 14 Sep 2017
The myth that Westminster’s voting system is ‘strong and stable’ has been bust for goodIf ‘strong and stable’ has been the motto of Parliament’s First Past the Post voting system, June 5th put an end to that myth once and for all. For the third time in a row,...Posted 24 Aug 2017
June 2017’s election was the third strike for Westminster’s voting system. It’s outThe evidence is there for us all to see now: the 2017 General Election was the third strike for the First Past the Post voting system. From producing a Parliament where no party got more...Posted 21 Aug 2017
We have a chance to revitalise British democracy – I look forward to leading the pushOn Monday I began my role as Chief Executive of the Electoral Reform Society – the world’s longest-standing pro-democracy group. I join at a time of huge change for democracy in the UK. The ERS has grown...Posted 08 Aug 2017
The results come in for the UK’s most bizarre and elitist electionBaron Vaux of Harrowden (or Richard Hubert Gordon Gilbey) has won a seat for life on the basis of 16 (out of 27 cast) aristocrats’ votes. How did we get here? In 1999, the House...Posted 20 Jul 2017
Let’s close the EU referendum generation gapIf you feel let down by the state of the EU referendum debate you’re not on your own. But it turns out there’s one group who are being especially locked out of the conversation: young...Posted 03 Jun 2016
David Torrance’s guide to the EU referendum cuts through the spinThe following is an introduction to David Torrance’s new guide to the EU referendum, which the ERS are supporting. Darren Hughes is Deputy Chief Executive of the Electoral Reform Society. As the UK’s longest-standing democracy organisation,...Posted 25 Apr 2016
You can’t just use the votes cast in a general election to fill the House of LordsTry as the political class might, calls to reform the House of Lords always come to the fore. So it’s no surprise that the issue has been on the agenda again for the past week....Posted 10 Aug 2015
Lobbying: Recall and Registers are no silver bulletsThe lobbying scandal is yet more evidence of the corrupting power of money in our politics. But as ministers fall over themselves to look decisive, it’s time for a reality check. The Government doesn’t seem...Posted 03 Jun 2013
A bold step forward for women’s representationIreland currently ranks 87 in the world for gender representation in politics with just 15.1% of Irish parliamentarians being women. This means in the world league tables Ireland lags behind Iraq, Burkina Faso and Turkmenistan...Posted 23 Jul 2012