Recalling elected representatives

The Government has promised to introduce a Bill to allow electors to recall MPs and some people have suggested that it should also apply to Councillors.

Basically, I think it is yet another distraction from campaigning for an effective voting system, which would let voters “recall” representatives at the end of their term of office.  First Past The Post does not allow that because about 70% of MPs and many Councillors have safe seats.

Recall would be a cosmetic tinkering to make the system look more democratic without much real effect.  It would be a sticking plaster, when radical surgery is needed.

If the right to recall was very powerful, it would be an irresistible temptation to opposition parties, when the polls were running in their favour, to force by-elections for political purposes in marginal constituencies.

If the right was not very powerful, it would not be very useful anyway.

MPs and Councillors should be automatically expelled if they are convicted of offences, or perhaps if the sentence is at or above a certain level.  If they have not broken the law but have sailed close to breaking it or have failed to perform constituency duties adequately, that is for voters to judge at the next election and, with an effective voting system, they could exercise that judgement against a particular candidate without necessarily voting against their usual party.

The only voting system I know that could achieve this is the Single Transferable Vote (STV) in multi-member constituencies. I recommend www.stvAction.org.uk for more information about STV.

MPs' expenses

Since the scandal of MPs' expenses broke, there has been much talk of reforming the voting system, but there are many voting systems, most better than the First Past The Post used now.  Of all systems, the Single Transferable Vote ("STV") would uniquely help voters to reward good MPs and punish bad ones. It is a preferential, or "choice", system which would let voters sack corrupt MPs without voting against their own party. Please visit http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/voterchoice and sign the petition to the Prime Minister.

Please visit www.stvAction.org.uk or www.electoral-reform.org.uk if you would like to know more about STV.

 

 

Knives in school

Did anyone else notice there was an announcement yesterday that metal detectors were to be installed to prevent knives being taken into schools and, today, there was an announcement that cooking will be a compulsory school subject. What will they cook? Jelly and blancmange?

More seriously, most boys carried at least penknives when I was at school and I had to carry either a jack-knife or a sheath-knife when I was in Scout uniform. Like most boys, I got into fights from time to time, but I never drew my knife or had one drawn against me.

MPs' pay

In most occupations, there is at least an approximate relationship between pay and market forces.  Even if they do not strike, there will be a tendency for more to leave the occupation than to enter it if they are chronically underpaid and recruitment will be difficult until pay is increased.  Conversely, applications will exceed vacancies if the occupation is overpaid.

 

There were 3,554 candidates for only 646 vacancies at the 2005 General Election.  This was the second highest number of candidates on record, 235 more than in 2001 and an average of 5.5 for each vacancy, so should MPs vote themselves any pay rise or are they overpaid already?

 

 

Religion and politics

Last, week, one of the two Christian politicians, who led the USA and UK into war against Iraq, converted formally to Catholicism as long expected.  In the same week, another leading UK politician, who opposes the war, told the world he did not believe in God.  I am not going to conclude from that that all religious people are bad and all sceptics are good, but I do wish so many religious people would not tend to assume that to be religious is to be good and to be sceptical is to be bad.

 

I would like the best political leaders regardless of religious belief or non-belief but, on balance, I find it easier to trust someone who makes his own decisions and accepts responsibility for them than someone who claims to be guided by a supernatural being.  What makes some religious people dangerous when they have power - be they Christians, Moslems or whatever - is that they "know" they are right because God told them.

 

More Joined-up Government?

Today Queen's Speech, written by the Government, contained a proposal to extend compulsory education to 18. Is this from the same politicians who want to reduce the minimum voting age to 16? D'oh!

Joined-up Government?

The minimum age for buying tobacco rose today from 16 to 18. I wonder how many MPs who voted for this also want to reduce the minimum voting age from 18 to 16.