UKIP joins cross-party push for electoral reform

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-32786750

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UKIP has joined forces with the Greens and other parties to petition the government over voting reform.

The delegation, which also included representatives from the Lib Dems, Plaid Cymru and the SNP, handed a petition to Downing Street on Monday.

It calls for the UK voting system to be changed to one of proportional representation, saying the current set up has "failed voters".

Under the current first-past-the-post system, the winner takes all.

The petition, which has been organised by the Electoral Reform Society and Unlock Democracy, has attracted 477,000 signatures.

It calls for "a fairer, more proportional voting system which ensures that seats in Parliament match the way people vote".

"This would make sure people's choices were fairly reflected in Parliament, and would allow everyone to vote for someone they believe in," it says.

'Total rethink'

A referendum on whether to change the voting system was held in 2011 as part of the coalition agreement between the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives.

The Lib Dems wanted to move to a system of Alternative Vote, which allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference.

But voters decided by 67.9% to 32.1% to retain the status quo. Turnout was 41%.

However, there have been fresh calls to reform the voting system since the recent general election.

UKIP received almost four million votes in the poll, while the Greens won just over one million - but each party only returned one MP.

UKIP leader Nigel Farage - who was at Downing Street to deliver the petition - said the results highlighted the need for change.

"This campaign for electoral reform is vital, now," said Mr Farage, who was joined by UKIP deputy chairwoman Suzanne Evans and the party's only MP, Douglas Carswell.

"The results of the general election where five million votes, the views of five million people are now represented by only two MPs; four million people voted for UKIP, for only one seat. It cannot go on like this," he said.

Mr Carswell, MP for Clacton, added that the case for electoral reform was "strong" and believed that "a broad cross-party coalition" would help to secure change.

'Outrageous'

Greens leader Natalie Bennett called for a "total rethink" of the way we vote, saying her party would have secured at least 24 MPs on 7 May if the UK had "a fair voting system".

"The recent election has demonstrated that we need real change in our constitution," she said.

Meanwhile, the SNP's Westminster leader, Angus Robertson also added his support to the case for reform.

He acknowledged the current voting system had delivered a virtual landslide for his party in Scotland, where the SNP 56 of the 59 seats up for grabs - but said the system was unfair.

"From an unrepresentative voting system to the unelected House of Lords, SNP MPs will be a strong voice in the coming years for the change we need to see," the MP said.

Representatives of the Lib Dems, who have long-campaigned for a move to proportional representations, were also present.

Party president Baroness Brinton said that while she disagreed with UKIP's policies it was "outrageous" that its four million votes only resulted in one MP.

Electoral Reform Society chief executive Katie Ghose, who stood for Labour in the general election, said the outcome was "the least proportional result in history".

"That's because our two-party electoral system cannot cope with the fact that people want to vote for a variety of parties," she added.