I am a natural liberal; a live-and-let-live sort of person. Our capitalist economy needs to be regulated; society must look after those in need; foreign policy should be 'ethical' and the role of Government is to ensure we are protected and to pursue policies that will make us a happier, more contented, society. With regard to the AV Referendum, my natural inclination has been that " Any movement towards PR is a to be welcomed . Election results will be a more accurate reflection of the will of the electorate "
But, think on sunshine! Be very careful what you wish for. Do we want to have a true reflection of " The will of the people " ? The people wouldn't have supported the recent, UN-backed, action in Libya. The people would want to restore capital punishment and 'throw-away-the-key' prison sentences. The people would string up suspected paedophiles by the goolies. The people's immigration policy would have decimated the NHS. Very right-wing, misguided and dangerous. The leader-writers of the gutter-press would be running the country.
The man-in-the-street agrees with, but doesn't vote, BNP for two main reasons. Firstly, that party, and all right-of-centre parties, are tainted by the historic spectre of Fascism. Secondly, the first-past-the-post voting system makes it difficult to win and a vote for a minor party feels like a wasted vote. In my opinion, the BNP would get many 'second choice' votes if we move to AV making it much more likely that they would secure majorities when these votes are taken into account. Voting BNP second will become respectable and we would be in danger of a massive lurch to the right in the UK. In due course, the BNP could be part of a Coalition and eventually be the Government. You have been warned!
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