Gordon’s Failed Gambit

May 12, 2010 Editorial

The May 6th election in Britain, which produced the first “hung” parliament – one in which no single party had the requisite 50 + 1% of the seats necessary to form a government that could survive a “no-confidence” motion in the House of Commons – has been resolved. For now, that is. Last night, Gordon Brown resigned as Prime Minister, the Queen invited David Cameron to replace him and he did so, announcing that his Conservative party would form a coalition with the Liberal democrats, under Nick Clegg, to govern.
Over the past few days (and nights) there had been frantic and frenetic meetings between the Conservatives and the Liberals and (separately and evidently secretly) the Labour Party and the Liberals to convince the latter to enter a coalition to form a government. All of this had to be accomplished before May 25th or else, new elections would have been precipitated – an eventuality that none of the parties believed would have endeared them to the electorate.
Until Monday, it was widely assumed that the Conservatives had the inside track but the Labour leader Gordon Brown pulled the rug from under these assumptions by announcing late that afternoon he was going to step down as leader of his party.
From the onset, Liberal leader Clegg had made it clear that there could be no hope of striking a bargain with Labour under Brown as leader. With an eye to an election that would have to come sooner or later, Clegg obviously felt that to retain Brown, as one whom he had criticised trenchantly and who had been rejected by the electorate, would be seen as too cynical a move by that electorate. The surprise was that Brown agreed. For a decade under Tony Blair he had made no secret of his ambition to be Prime Minister and most felt that he would have to be dragged kicking and screaming from No 10 Downing Street. That he has done so voluntarily is sure to raise his historical legacy.
It was not a coincidence therefore that immediately following his announcement, Labour announced a new package to the Liberals: guaranteed alternative vote (AV) for elections to Commons; possible future referendum on “full PR” of single transferable vote; full coalition with cabinet seats and broad agreement on deficit reduction. Bitterly disappointed and amid some accusations of “betrayal”, the Conservatives countered with their best offer to the Libs: a referendum on alternative vote for elections to Commons; cabinet seats and other ministerial jobs and agreement on schools, environment and possibly taxation.
It is evident that Brown’s resignation was necessary but not sufficient to convince Clegg. Maybe it was the uncertainty of dealing with a Labour party that would not select its new leader until September. Be as it may, the most important development out of the whole deadlock is the acceptance (grudging as it may be by the Conservatives and Labour) that there must be some sort of electoral reform in Britain.
The “first past the post” (FPTP) single-member constituency mechanism has long characterised the British Westminster political system. Here the country is divided into “constituencies” where each constituency sends one member to parliament – the individual that secures the largest number of votes. This, like the one that the British criticised and changed here in 1964, can result in denying representation to smaller parties in proportion to their overall votes.
In the latest election, for instance, the Liberals secured 23% of the votes yet secured only 57 seats. In contrast, Labour with 29% of votes grabbed a massive 258 bloc of seats. Under proportional representation (PR), which has long been the Liberals’ Holy Grail, they would have earned 149 seats.
One can understand their agitation for change and the others’ complacency on the issue. While we do not know as yet whether the Conservatives sweetened their last offer on the voting reform – “alternative voting”, where one also chooses 2nd and 3rd choices, falls short of the gains that PR would have delivered – one survey suggested that they would have received 79 seats rather the 57 under FPTP – it is at least a step in the right direction.

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Latest News