SO it's important to make your OWN mind up on AV and DON'T let others, (who have a vested interest) do it for you and if NO to AV wins on May 5th we know EXACTLY who to blame for it don't we. Hope that Lib Dem MPs resign from Coalition and stand as independents leaving David Cameron to his "strong" and "decisive" MINORITY Government!
Friday May 6th 2011 10pm the Lib Dems have all but been completely wiped out in the local council elections and the results of the AV referendum are just in Cue David Dimbleby BBC1 election night special.
"Well ladies and gentleman as predicted earlier the YES to AV have been pipped at the post by NO to AV in the only national referendum on electoral reform the UK is ever likely to see. I can confirm NO to AV have won by the tiniest of margins with turnout at a low 35% with just over a hundred votes in it there will be NO change to our electoral system in 2015. First- Past-The-Post wins. Jubilent scenes there at the NO to AV campaign HQ. Now we take you live to Number 10 Downing Street where David Cameron is due to make an anouncement."
David Cameron: "I would like to thank the British people for endorsing First-Past-The-Post a system that has stood the test of time and served this country very well previously and thanks to you the British public will do so long into our future".
Sunday May 8th BBC1 Andrew Marr show:
Andrew Marr to Ed Miliband: "so what went wrong for the YES to AV do you think Ed?"
Ed Miliband to Andrew Marr: " Well I think we can see from the very low turnout that the voting public were confused by the issues at stake mainly because of the wall of disinformation put out by the Tory NO to AV campaign. That's why I'm saying that we in the Labour Party must still support Fairer Votes and we'd like to work with the Lib Dems in achieving this in the future"
Andrew Marr to Ed Miliband: " So are you saying that you will put AV onto the Labour Manifesto?"
Ed Miliband to Andrew Marr: "That's what I would like to happen yes. Obviously I need to talk to my Party first but I am hopeful that as a party we can embrace AV - I believe it's Fairer than First-Past-The-Post and will help the Progressive Majority in defeating the Tories."
Monday May 9th 1am:
Nick Clegg on phone to David Cameron:
"Hi David, sorry to trouble you this late but I've been having hours of phone calls all day - it's no good I can't contain this one xxxx and xxxx are going over to Ed. We need an urgent meeting first thing tomorrow 6 am"
What follows is the rapid unravelling of the coalition. Lib Dem MP after Lib Dem MP sensing defeat in the 2015 General Election cross the floor to join Labour. Lib Dem MPs that stay in government are in rebellious mood - angry at AV defeat and are openly hostile to David Cameron. Coalition Government looks not only weakened but it appears that David Cameron has lost control of his own ministers.
June 2011: Vince Cable resigns from Government stating "irreconcilable differences" between himself and Government Policy - in an interview with the Guardian he states "David Cameron is intent on delivering tax cuts to the wealthy at the expense of the poor"
July 2011: Sensing defeat TUC organise a week of National Strikes to bring down the Government
August 2011: Latest growth figures show UKs GDP is back into reverse and unemployment jumps to 2.75 million
September 2011: Ed Miliband at PMQs "This government lost the respect of the British people long ago when will the Prime Minister just admit defeat and call for another election?"
October 2011 the Government having lost a crucial vote in the the House of Commons - David Cameron announces an immediate General Election.
December 2011: Charlotte Vere and Baroness Warsi are watching TV together - Ed Miliband is outside No. 10: "I would like to thank the British people for placing their confidence in me. I promise the next General Election shall be fought under the fairer Alternative Vote"
There's a ring at the doorbell. It's Interflora with the biggest bouquet of flowers they've ever seen! Placing them down on the hallway table they pick up the attached card and read:
"Dear Charlotte & Sayeeda - Thank you for all your help. I couldn't have done it without you. E.M."
And anyone in any doubt I thought a good guide in life is well what would Winston Churchill have said?
Well we know what he said because he said this about AV...
... “it’s the most worthless votes go to the most worthless candidates.”
Thank you Winston; I couldn’t have put it better myself.
And since then I've heard this quote being repeated by various members of the NO to AV press gangers - the implication of course is that if our national hero Winston Churchill was No to AV then we must be also but Churchill also said this earlier in his long career as a politician:
"The women's suffrage movement is only the small edge of the wedge, if we allow women to vote it will mean the loss of social structure and the rise of every liberal cause under the sun.Women are well represented by their fathers, brothers, and husbands."
As this quote clearly shows is that at the time Churchill was set against Votes for Women - which at the time was the consensus view with Suffragettes being branded as extremists - a view that seems completely alien to us now. I've no doubt the same view will be taken of the Alternative Vote in the future. Fortunately eventually after a long and bitter struggle women eventually got the vote in 1918 (or at least some of them over 30 did*) - It wasn't until 1928 that all women over 21 got the vote. (*Incidentally it would be interesting to know if there were any calls from women at the time [in 1918] to reject votes for women because it only applied to women over 30 and we want universal suffrage)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women's_suffrage_in_the_United_Kingdom
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Representation_of_the_People_Act_1918
It's hard to imagine it now but Churchill was bitterly opposed to giving women the vote, (the consensus view at the time). Perhaps then the lesson to be learned is that when it comes to the Alternative Vote referendum it's important that we make our own mind up and not let historical figures do it for us - even if they are a National Hero and that at the time of any electoral reform there will be and always have been lots of dissenting voices from establishment figures.
Statue of Emmeline Pankhurst, Victoria Tower Gardens, Westminster http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women's_suffrage_in_the_United_Kingdom
On at least three occasions I've seen David Cameron use a race analogy in his desperate attempt to discredit the Alternative Vote. On Friday 1st of April in Wales he said this:
"and it's a system that's so unfair that a candidate which came second or third can end up winning. Just think forward to the Olympics; Usain Bolt powers home in the hundred metres when it comes to handing out the Gold Medal they give it to the person who comes third. You wouldn't do it in the Olympics, we shouldn't do it in politics we've got to vote no this crazy system."
Well David Cameron is wrong to compare electing an Member of Parliament with a race because firstly with First-Past-The-Post there is no post or finish line. An MP can be elected with as little as 29% of the vote so if I were to use David Cameron's race analogy I would say:
"Just think forward to the Olympics; Usain Bolt powers along to 29 metres and then everyone just stops running and they give him the Gold Medal even though no one finished the race or crossed the line... in fact there IS no finish line. You wouldn't do it in the Olympics, we shouldn't do it in politics we've got to vote no this crazy system... vote YES to AV on May 5th"
Secondly neither system can be compared with a race because electing an MP is about constituents choosing a person to best represent them in Parliament and not a popularity contest, (or a race) - because AV enables at least half the voters to choose their MP it is more democratic than First-Past-The-Post - which more often than not results in less than half the voters electing their MP. But if David Cameron insists on using his NO to AV race analogy I would answer him by saying; at least the Alternative Vote has a finish line to cross, (50% of the vote) which is more than than can be said of First-Past-The-Post!
