Referendum 5th May

[kinell]

someone just told me there is a referendum on 5th may...

about time too i say, the opportunity at last to have a direct say...as promised..

the whole european community has become a tiresome burden and i for many will be pleased for england to get out of it..

[Ankou]

ok, and what do you understand of this referendum then .... ?

[I.Don No]

oh that the referendum was about leaving the EU....alas it is not......just about AV

[kinell]

will the required 'democratic' answer be 'yes' or otherwise we will keep asking the question until you give the answer we require?

[bookbinder]

But isn't it strange that, just because the government seem to want a referendum on AV, it happens without any argument, yet we don't get a (promised) referendum on staying in/ getting out of the EU?

[Ankou]

righto

[sandyRoe]

Part of the government want the referendum. I'm not sure that many Tories want it.

[kinell]

oh my mistake...its a vote about av...some sort of voting method...

will this help those elected to take on board the views of the people they are supposed to represent and act accordingly?

i didnt think so

[modeller]

No it means if you come third you can still be elected.
It's a sop to the Lib/dems who set it out as a condition of joining any coalition.
It's nothing to do with Europe but if it does get passed we will get more Lib/Dem influence in government and they are in favour of ever closer ties with that monstrosity called the EU.

[Gromit]

AV will help fringe party's with minority appeal such as UKiP and other anti EU Parties.

[DTCwordfan]

and thats the problem with AV - it becomes a double edged sword for the second votes - look at the prty dealing in Oz that demean it.

I would like to have seen a combination of first past the post, combined with an element of proportional representation - i.e 2/3rds the first past the post and 1/3rd drawn from a central list.......and larger first past the post constituencies to cut down on the 650 odd we have now - whcih is even bigger than Congress sat in the USA. And a reduction should cut the costs of Government.

[sandyRoe]

AV means that extremists of all shades will have less chance of being elected. Moderation in politics can only be a good thing.

[Gromit]

Sandy,
You mean like the European elections which elected two BNP MEPs?

[sandyRoe]

Aren't the European elections proportional representational?

[rojash]

"will this help those elected to take on board the views of the people they are supposed to represent and act accordingly? "

That would be the views of people so politically aware that they:
a) Didn't know there was to be a referendum, and
b) When they found out, didn't know what it was for

would it?

This is what I find so scary about democracy...