Today’s statement by Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, to move ahead with the referendum on the Alternative Voting system and constitutional reform is very welcome.
The Deputy Prime Minister announced that the vote on AV referendum will be held on the same day as the Assembly election on 5th of May and that there will be a reduction in the number of MPs across the UK. The number of MPs will be reduced from 650 to 600, meaning a saving of £12million a year and holding the AV referendum on the same day as the Assembly election will save an estimated £17 million.
2011 could be a year when we see much needed constitutional change in Wales and the rest of the UK, however, we cannot justify asking the people of Wales to go to the polls three times in four months.
I have previously said that we wouldn’t support holding the Assembly referendum on the same day as the Assembly elections itself and that remains the case. We cannot have prospective Assembly candidates knocking lumps out of each other on one platform and standing together on another on both Welsh-wide issues.
The AV referendum is a UK-wide poll and holding it on the same day as the Assembly election will save money and it will increase voter turn out, something that should be welcomed by all political parties. I see no reason why campaigning for the Assembly elections will conflict with campaigning on the referendum for a change in the electoral system.
Referenda and elections cost a lot of money to run and we simply cannot justify to the people of Wales spending money when we don’t need to. The Assembly elections should take place as planned and it will be the duty of political parties to inform the voters about the choices they face.
I welcome the decision to reduce the number of MPs across the UK and have uniformity in the size of constituencies. This will begin the process of making our electoral system fairer and cut down on the cost of politics. Careful consideration must be taken in rural areas in Wales as we cannot have unwieldy, large and unmanageable constituencies.
I am also calling for an amendment to the Government of Wales Act 2006 to protect Assembly constituencies from the cut in the number of MPs as they are currently linked. The Welsh Liberal Democrats will also be pushing for the powers for the National Assembly to have the right to change the voting system. We want a fully proportional system of electing AMs so that the elected Senedd is a true representation of the country.
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Excuse me… what? Holding any other referendum on the same day as the Senedd ones, whether Powers or AV, is treating devolution, the Senedd, and Wales as a whole with contempt. Is that seriously what your’e asking your followers to do?
Kirsty,
“I have previously said that we wouldn’t support holding the Assembly referendum on the same day as the Assembly elections itself and that remains the case. We cannot have prospective Assembly candidates knocking lumps out of each other on one platform and standing together on another on both Welsh-wide issues”.
But you will be fighting your own coalition partners all the Way on AV and it is frankly ridiculous for Welsh Scottish and Northern Irish voters to vote for one sort of PR when they are voting for another time for their Parliament or Assembly and I remind you this is STV in Northern Ireland.
At least be honest.The reason you support the AV referendum on the sane day is you hope the Lib-Dem’s identification with proportional representation will mean an increased vote in the other elections,
Democracy has never been easy and your argument shows that the Lib Dems’ claim to be the party of bringing democracy closer to the people is just about securing political advantage for yourselves.
The bottom line of this debate is how to encourage turnout so that the result is a true reflection of what the voters want. If this is best served by hosting it on the same day as the Assembly election then so be it, with the added bonus of saving money. However, the decision on the date should rest with the Electoral Commission and, from this point on, we will hear politicians of every ilk pointing the finger at one another. I just hope that the media allow for the different arguments to get through. Whatever date the referendum is on, those who have been most vocal have the opportunity to make their voice heard through the ballot box. I hope they take that opportunity to do so seriously and make their voice heard.