‘Where next for electoral reform?’

This week in Parliament, something unprecedented happened. A British government confirmed that it is committed to looking at electoral reform. The Prime Minister said that, in his view, the change requires a mandate at the next general election, and the Democracy Minister announced that she is looking at next steps to get us there.

This happened as MPs debated the Representation of the People Bill. The Bill does some good things – including extending the franchise to 16 year olds, as is already the case in Scotland. But it does not address the fact that under First Past the Post, many of those votes will not count.

Westminster’s dysfunctional voting system is linked to dwindling mandates, unrepresentative results, and – at the last election – saw six out of ten voters landed with a Westminster MP they did not vote for. Small wonder the UK has some of the lowest levels of trust in government of any OECD democracy. Too many have been shut out and not served by politics for too long. As Neil Kinnock has pointed out, fairer politics is not only a good in itself but the bedrock of a fairer society. To rewire the country, Labour must rewire Westminster.

READ MORE: Labour Party Conference 2026: Full LabourList events programme, revealed

Thankfully MPs are catching up with the public, election experts and Labour members – all of whom are in favour of addressing First Past the Post. Polling of parliamentarians has found a majority of MPs back a National Commission on Electoral Reform. I was proud to speak alongside Andy Burnham at last year’s Labour Party conference, when he also endorsed the proposal for a National Commission.

With Ministers considering their next steps on electoral reform, Labour Party members and affiliates now have the chance to show that the Labour movement stands shoulder to shoulder with the Prime Minister: that we need to get a grip on our broken voting system – and that a National Commission is the first step to doing so.

Constituency Labour Parties up and down the UK are submitting a contemporary motion calling for exactly this and delegates are getting organised. The 2022 Labour conference made the historic decision to back Proportional Representation and an “open and inclusive process” to choose a new voting system. It is my hope that the 2026 conference will define and kickstart that process: a National Commission on Electoral Reform starting this autumn.

The Government, under our new Prime Minister, can lead the way in building consensus for change. In doing this, Andy Burnham would show progressive voters and the Labour movement he can be trusted to keep his word – and that he really does intend to be a great, reforming Prime Minister.

We do not get Labour governments in this country often. We now have the opportunity to launch a National Commission on Electoral Reform from a position of strength, setting a course towards fundamentally improving our society by championing fairness and equality in how the core of our democracy functions. 

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It is also an opportunity to repair the union of our nations, three of which are led by parties who seek independence, by offering fair representation and consensus-building government at its centre. Because if we do not rise to the challenge, the crises of distrust in politics, a fraying union, and growing nativism and nationalism will continue to fester.

Our party is at its best when we openly debate the best way to bring about the goal we all share of a fair and equal society. Annual conference can be a great example of that. But while delegates from the membership and trade unions get to speak for or against motions on the conference floor, most parliamentarians have no such opportunity.

That’s why, this year, I will be taking part in a neutrally moderated debate on the Sunday night of conference. We hope politicians from both sides of the argument will take part. 

I look forward to the debate. I believe it is clear that a consensus is emerging that spans the whole Labour movement – and the momentum for change is becoming unstoppable. But I very much hope that those who disagree, and who are content with the status quo, will come along and offer a substantive defence of First Past the Post.

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