Promiscuity or fairness: The AV question

By Sonny Leong

What’s the definition of promiscuity? One more partner than you’ve ever had. If recent reports of the Liberal Democrats seeking exploratory talks with Labour – after having consummated a relationship with the Conservatives – are accurate, and a partnership is a possible outcome of the Alternative Vote (AV) system, then I am not buying any of it.

‘One Person, One Vote’ is a basic fundamental principle of our British democracy.

It’s fair, democratic and has served our nation extremely well. It’s what our democracy has been built on and it is why I’m voting No in the referendum on the Alternative Vote on May 5th. As more and more senior Labour figures back the NO2AV Campaign, I felt compelled to add my contribution to the debate.

I’m a progressive and I don’t have a closed mind to improving our politics. In fact, I would like to see greater participation, especially within all minority communities. But it seems to me AV is the opposite of improving politics. It would be a step backwards because its perceived advantages soon evaporate on closer inspection.

AV allows some people to vote, vote again and then vote once more. And then maybe vote yet again, just for luck. But not everybody would be awarded this privilege, only the people who vote for smaller parties. Anyone who supports extremist and smaller parties would be the privileged elite. Those who support mainstream candidates would still have their vote counted once.

Such a system would encourage the major parties to chase the second preferences of voters who had put extremist candidates first.

AV would drag politics down. At a local level people would scratch their heads and say “how did we end up with this person as our MP when he or she was the first choice of so few of us?”

It wouldn’t be long before people complained that politicians were doing coalition deals behind closed doors in hung parliaments. They would hanker after the days when they had the right to evict one government and put another one in.

On a more basic and political level, for years I have fought both the Tories and Liberal Democrats in Oxfordshire. So when I’ve been presented with an opportunity to ‘provide a shield for the Liberal Democrats’ why should I as a Labour member vote to support and protect the Lib Dems?

Relationships have to be built on trust and respect – the recent behaviour of the Liberal Democrats’ leadership is wanton, deceitful and dishonest. As Labour members, if we vote No on May 5th we can create real instability within the coalition by undermining the Liberal Democrats. Not to worry, once the coalition is rocked, we then re-group, refresh our policies and fight the Tories all the way to May 2015.

Sonny Leong is Chair of Chinese for Labour, but writes in a personal capacity.