Why pressure is growing from the PM’s own ranks to back votes at 16The Electoral Reform Society has launched a new pamphlet titled ‘Civic Duty: The Conservative Case for Votes at 16 & 17.’ Below is its introduction written by ERS Chief Executive, Darren Hughes. British politics is...Posted 11 Jul 2018
These ‘sham elections’ in the House of Lords must end – as the first step towards real changeToday, with 12 votes, the Earl of Devon won the by-election to decide who will replace Earl Baldwin of Bewdley in the House of Lords. Wherever you stand on the House of Lords, the Prime...Posted 04 Jul 2018
A cross-party group of MPs are fighting Westminster’s broken voting systemThis week is the first National Democracy Week – a rare moment to put the ‘nuts and bolts’ of democracy on the agenda. The elections of the past year have shown that Westminster’s First Past...Posted 04 Jul 2018
National Democracy Week: The Conservative case for extending the franchise is stronger than everThe following piece is a guest post by Owen Meredith, National Chairman of the Tory Reform Group. This inaugural National Democracy Week, we should take a moment to remember the sacrifices made by millions to protect...Posted 03 Jul 2018
There’s an easy way to tackle the ‘political gender gap’ – what’s the government waiting for?It’s no news that British politics has a big problem with gender diversity. Just a third of MPs and councillors are women. Established prejudices need challenging, social media trolls need stopping and there must be...Posted 02 Jul 2018
Four ways Westminster’s politics needs fixing this Democracy WeekMonday marks the start of the first ‘National Democracy Week’ – the government’s initiative to encourage democratic participation. It has been established on the premise that “regardless of who we are or where we are...Posted 29 Jun 2018
Electoral reform for Love Island?What’s not to like about Love Island? A group of good-looking singletons enter a villa in the hopes of finding love, and we the public, get to vote on what goes on. Much like the...Posted 29 Jun 2018
The need to rein in the ‘online wild west’ is now being recognisedFollowing a series of scandals around fake news, foreign interference, and misuse of personal data, the Electoral Commission acknowledged earlier this week that “our democracy may be under threat”. The Commission is calling for urgent...Posted 29 Jun 2018
The campaign for truly local democracy in Scotland is growingLast weekend – a rare sunny Saturday in Glasgow – around 500 people gathered not to drink cocktails in the shade – but to discuss the future of Scottish democracy: a new vision for ‘taking...Posted 26 Jun 2018
59 years since Enid Lakeman defended fair votes in IrelandLast weekend marked the 59th anniversary of a major event in the Society’s history and the history of the campaign for fair votes. In June 1959, Ireland held a referendum that would determine the very...Posted 18 Jun 2018