The PM’s ‘Levelling Up’ agenda is another victim of Westminster’s warped electoral logic The Prime Minister’s Levelling Up agenda – announced with great fanfare on Thursday – risks leaving swathes of the country ignored. In not very subtle terms, the PM suggested new powers would only go to ideologically-aligned parts of... Posted 16 Jul 2021
Boundary review? It’s time for an electoral system review Boundary Review day comes around faster every year it seems. The so-called Sixth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies is now on its third go at suggesting new boundaries. The electoral map has to be updated... Posted 09 Jun 2021
We need to talk about Westminster Debates about the future of the union and devolution to the UK’s nations and regions continue to dominate the constitutional sphere, as we have set out before, with the results of the May 2021 elections... Posted 04 Jun 2021
England is blighted by local one party states England is blighted by local one-party states: areas where it too often feels like only one party can win, where parties control nearly all the seats – and where scrutiny is a shadow of what... Posted 01 Apr 2021
There are big reasons some people won’t vote this May – and it’s not just Covid When one party takes all – on a fraction of the vote – people understandably feel alienated and voiceless, and new research appears to back this up. Posted 19 Mar 2021
One in four Constituency Labour Parties now back Proportional Representation – so what’s next? Pressure is growing. This week the campaign to get Labour to back electoral reform hit a new milestone. A quarter of Constituency Labour Parties (CLPs) have passed motions calling for a fairer voting system. This... Posted 19 Feb 2021
MPs step up parliamentary push for electoral reform with new cross-party campaign MPs have launched a fresh effort to reform Westminster’s undemocratic voting laws, with a new all-party group pushing for change. The cross-party group – the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Electoral Reform – is working towards... Posted 12 Feb 2021
A bumper year for local elections – but a dud system is holding England back Last week, the government announced that the elections on May 6th will go ahead – a welcome bit of clarity. Although this is good news for democracy, voters will still be short-changed under England’s one-party-takes-all... Posted 12 Feb 2021
Trump shows how First Past the Post gives the keys to extremists As the moving vans deliver the next residents of the White House into their new home, it is worth looking back on how America’s First Past the Post style political system aided Trump’s rise to... Posted 20 Jan 2021
Shock Parliamentary survey results highlights calls for electoral reform By Akash Thiara, a Placement Student with the Electoral Reform Society from the University of Nottingham. A survey conducted by the House of Commons’ Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Select Committee (PACAC) asked people what... Posted 15 Dec 2020