Wednesday, 9 September 2009
DELAYING THE RESULT
At the recent UKIP conference in Southport there was a debate about proportional representation, it proved to be an interesting debate. Many people like our first past the post voting system as our election results are usually clear and concise, and the decision of the electorate is swiftly implemented.
Here in the UK we hold a vote on a Thursday chosen only by the Prime Minister and by the afternoon of following day the new Prime Minister is on the steps of 10 Downing Street waving to the media and thronged masses, or those they let through the security gates of Downing Street. This is quick, clear and concise.
However, in those countries who use proportional representation to elect their new government very often the results are too close to call and behind closed doors deals are done, power struggles go on and eventually after a few days, or in some cases weeks, a new government is declared which is often a mish-mash of political affiliations very often with a disproportionate amount of influence going to smaller political parties. Not hear in the UK though, election on Thursday and new government installed on Friday - or is that about to come to an end?
Many councils around the country are talking about delaying their general election counts until the morning after the election, this could mean that the long held tradition of the newly elected PM strutting his elected stuff on Friday afternoon will be lost, we may have to wait until late on the Friday night, or even Saturday morning, before we know which leader is to blight our lives for the following five years. To those of us who take part in elections this does not seem right at all.
My first election as a candidate was the 1997 general election when I was the Referendum Party candidate in Walsall North, I was impressed with the way the election was handled. The polls closed at 10 pm and within ten to fifteen minutes later the ballot boxes began turning up in Walsall Town Hall. by 2 am it was all over and the New Labour landslide was well on its way. By messing about with the traditional Thursday night count so much will be lost, including the buzz of watching the results come in until late into the night. All this will do is delay the result and another one of our British traditions will vanish - as have so many in the years since the New Labour wrecking machine came to power.
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