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<p>The Government strongly believes that it would be a profound mistake to abandon
the British system of voting and move to a system more favoured on the European continent
of so-called ‘proportional representation’. The Government was elected on a manifesto
which included a commitment to continue to support the use of the First Past the Post
voting system which “allows voters to kick out politicians who don’t deliver, both
locally and nationally”.</p><p>The Government believes the First Past the Post system
is a robust and secure way of electing MPs and provides for direct local accountability.
It ensures a clear link between elected representatives and their electors in a manner
that other voting systems do not</p><p><br>There was a significant vote in favour
of retaining First Past the Post for Parliamentary elections at 2011 Referendum while
the proposal to introduce an Alternative Vote was rejected by a significant majority
(67.9%) of voters. This Government strongly believes in respecting the results of
referendums.</p><p>Experience of countries across the world with so-called proportional
representation (PR) voting systems show that those with that voting system risk fragmented
political parties, not grounded in local accountability. PR systems can create Governments
which are less stable and more fragile, where inter-party ‘back room’ deals determine
policy, and where minority and arguably fringe political parties can hold the balance
of power. PR can also mean that political parties’ central establishments are strengthened
versus local political parties.</p><p>First Past the Post is part of the voting system
of the world’s oldest, biggest and greatest democracies including in the United Kingdom,
India, and the United States.</p>
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