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Johnson urging electoral reform Johnson urging electoral reform
(9 minutes later)
Gordon Brown should hold a national referendum on electoral reform, Health Secretary Alan Johnson has said.Gordon Brown should hold a national referendum on electoral reform, Health Secretary Alan Johnson has said.
The prime minister should offer the public a "genuinely radical alternative" to the present system, he wrote in the Times.The prime minister should offer the public a "genuinely radical alternative" to the present system, he wrote in the Times.
A referendum could be held on the same day as a general election, said Mr Johnson, who has denied his reform call is part of a Labour leadership bid.A referendum could be held on the same day as a general election, said Mr Johnson, who has denied his reform call is part of a Labour leadership bid.
The Electoral Reform Society said his idea was "a breath of fresh air".The Electoral Reform Society said his idea was "a breath of fresh air".
'Overhaul the engine''Overhaul the engine'
Climate Change secretary Ed Miliband also said any reform of the political system needs to go beyond the issue of expenses.
Mr Johnson, who has been widely tipped as a potential successor to Mr Brown, urged the prime minister to involve the public in "a root and branch examination" of the political system in order to regain trust following the expenses scandal.Mr Johnson, who has been widely tipped as a potential successor to Mr Brown, urged the prime minister to involve the public in "a root and branch examination" of the political system in order to regain trust following the expenses scandal.
"We need to overhaul the engine, not just clean the upholstery," he wrote."We need to overhaul the engine, not just clean the upholstery," he wrote.
Under the current system, sometimes called "first past the post" or "winner takes all", the successful candidate is the one with the most votes, with no requirement for them to gain an absolute majority.Under the current system, sometimes called "first past the post" or "winner takes all", the successful candidate is the one with the most votes, with no requirement for them to gain an absolute majority.
But Mr Johnson said the government had the mandate to change that and should hold a referendum on "a specific new system".But Mr Johnson said the government had the mandate to change that and should hold a referendum on "a specific new system".
However, the heath secretary later revealed he did not clear his article with the prime minister before publication, although he said he did discuss it with people close to Mr Brown. However, the heath secretary later revealed he did not clear his article outlining his proposals with the prime minister before publication, although he said he did discuss it with people close to Mr Brown.
And he denied his call for a referendum was part of a bid for the Labour leadership.And he denied his call for a referendum was part of a bid for the Labour leadership.
"No, and it's quite unfair to suggest that it is. It is absolutely nothing to do with that," he told BBC Radio 4's The World At One."No, and it's quite unfair to suggest that it is. It is absolutely nothing to do with that," he told BBC Radio 4's The World At One.
The system Mr Johnson favours is known as Alternative Vote PlusThe system Mr Johnson favours is known as Alternative Vote Plus
The new system Mr Johnson favours is known as Alternative Vote Plus and was first suggested by the Independent Commission on Electoral Reform, led by Lord Jenkins, in 1998.The new system Mr Johnson favours is known as Alternative Vote Plus and was first suggested by the Independent Commission on Electoral Reform, led by Lord Jenkins, in 1998.
Under AV Plus, voters would have two ballot papers: one for their constituency representative and a second for their favoured political party.Under AV Plus, voters would have two ballot papers: one for their constituency representative and a second for their favoured political party.
Most seats in the Commons would be filled with locally elected MPs, but the remainder would be allocated by proportional representation according to the number of votes cast for each party.Most seats in the Commons would be filled with locally elected MPs, but the remainder would be allocated by proportional representation according to the number of votes cast for each party.
The Jenkins Commission referred to the second ballot as a "corrective top-up" which would allow the make-up of Parliament to more accurately reflect voters' overall party preferences.
Calling this an "elegant" option, Mr Johnson said: "This is a genuinely radical alternative that only Labour in government can facilitate."Calling this an "elegant" option, Mr Johnson said: "This is a genuinely radical alternative that only Labour in government can facilitate."
Fundamental issueFundamental issue
Speaking to the BBC, he said the review of the voting system would be part of a fundamental examination of the political system.Speaking to the BBC, he said the review of the voting system would be part of a fundamental examination of the political system.
"We're going to look at fixed term parliaments, reform of the House of Lords, more power for Parliament over the executive," he said."We're going to look at fixed term parliaments, reform of the House of Lords, more power for Parliament over the executive," he said.
"It would be absolutely perverse, if in the course of the debate we didn't look at the fundamental issue here, how people elect their representatives.
"As Tom Stoppard once said, it's not voting that defines a democracy, it's how those votes are counted, so electoral reform has to be part of this debate".
Mr Miliband said: "We need to have a much wider debate in Britain about how a parliament works, how we elect our representatives and how we can transform more power to people themselves.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband: "We need to go beyond reforming our expenses"Energy Secretary Ed Miliband: "We need to go beyond reforming our expenses"
"So they feel engaged in politics, they feel politics matters to them, they feel they have power in their own lives over the things that matter to them, that's what politics should be about." Climate Change secretary Ed Miliband later said he agreed that any reform of the political system needed to go beyond the issue of expenses.
Dr Ken Ritchie, chief executive of the Electoral Reform Society, said Mr Johnson should be congratulated for speaking out about the need to overall the "decrepit first-past-the-post system". "We need to have a much wider debate in Britain about how a Parliament works, how we elect our representatives and how we can transform more power to people themselves," he said.
Dr Ken Ritchie, chief executive of the Electoral Reform Society, said Mr Johnson should be congratulated for speaking out about the need to overhaul the "decrepit first-past-the-post system".
"His proposal... is a breath of fresh air in the debate on MPs' expenses that risks turning into a cul-de-sac," Dr Ritchie said."His proposal... is a breath of fresh air in the debate on MPs' expenses that risks turning into a cul-de-sac," Dr Ritchie said.
"Of course we need to make sure that MPs do not abuse the expense system, but simply preventing MPs from doing what they should not be doing is hardly a reform." The idea of proportional representation is simply not popular in our party, it's not popular in the Tory party, and even if there was a referendum held, it would not be binding Labour MP Sir Stuart Bell
UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage said Alan Johnson seemed to be the only Labour politician who had got the issue right. UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage said Mr Johnson seemed to be the only Labour politician who had got the issue right.
He said: "What the laws are, that's properly the province of Parliament, however elected. But how the laws are made is something that must be put to a referendum. "What the laws are, that's properly the province of Parliament, however elected. But how the laws are made is something that must be put to a referendum," he said.
"Mr Johnson gets this about elections to Westminster. It's just a pity that no one in his party understands that this applies to the Lisbon Treaty as well." But Sir Stuart Bell, Labour MP for Middlesbrough, said Mr Johnson's electoral reform proposals had little support in the House of Commons and would never be implemented.
"The idea of proportional representation is simply not popular in our party, it's not popular in the Tory party, and even if there was a referendum held, it would not be binding," he said.
"It could only be consultative, and a sovereign Parliament, elected after the next election, would simply ignore it."