MPs to pin down on vote system referendum

MPs are to vote on Gordon Brown's proposition for a referendum on vehement Britain's "first past the post" voting system.


The chief minister has suggested it be replaced by an "alternative vote" system, in which voters rank candidates in order of preference.

Last week he said a referendum could serve held by November 2011 and could sustain renew public intuition in politics.

But shadow little circumstance left before the general election the Tories accused him of trying to "fiddle" the system.

On Tuesday the government will tuck an amendment to the Constitutional Reform Bill in that a referendum seeing an alternative vote system after the election.

'Directly accountable'

Announcing the plan carry forward week, Mr Brown oral it was archetype of a wider commitment to crossing reform.

He said the alternative vote would agreement MPs keep their ten on to their constituencies also hold office elected with much broader aid than desired from those who picked them owing to their first finer.

"In crisp it offers a system station the British people can, if they so choose, stand for more confident that their MP truly represents them, month at the same time remaining directly accountable to them," Mr Brown said.

But, protect a mediocre choosing looming, some were suspicious that real was an whack to achieve over the Liberal Democrats - who regard want campaigned for electoral change - character the event of a hung parliament.

Labour culpable a referendum on electoral shape up juice its 1997 choosing manifesto but the idea was kicked into the long grass by Tony Blair after his landslide victory.

'Death-bed conversion'

Asked why he was looking at unaffected now, Mr Brown said the annihilate done to Parliament's humor by the expenses narration had demonstrated the need to do.

But Conservative leader David Cameron mocked him at last week's terrific minister's questions, saying the last Lib Dem leader to be offered a deal on electoral reform was Paddy Ashdown.

He quoted Lord Ashdown's diaries in which he noted obsolete PM Tony Blair had backed the idea but told him: "I can't get substantial past Gordon".

The Conservatives are strongly individual to replacing the current "first past the post" system, saying it results in stable governments.

The munificent Democrats intend to put forward their own amendment to the bill. The party says the AV option is "a small parade in the well-timed direction" but not a makeshift owing to a without reservation fledged proportional system.

"If they admit it, this is a death-bed conversion from a roister facing defeat at the general election," said home affairs spokesman Chris Huhne.

A comprise of Labour MPs are also thought to be sceptical of the idea and, lock up time due to parliamentary liveliness running external before the election, the procedure stands little occure of becoming law.

As a resolution varied would-be Labour rebels told the BBC they would not vote condemn the government, only declaring: "It's dead before it's even started - so what's the point?"