This is in the text of the LibDem-Tory agreement 6. Political Reform The parties agree to the establishment of five-year fixed-term parliaments. A Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government will put a binding motion before the House of Commons in the first days following this agreement stating that the next general election will be held on the first…
In the absence of parliament’s ability to form a new government without recourse to an election, a minority government could be forced to limp on until its fixed term ends.
With electoral system reform very much on the agenda in the UK at the moment, it would seem that the considerations of the Jenkins Commission should be at least getting a nod from the various players involved. For anybody interested here is a link to the full report of the Commission. The Commission was opposed…
One half of last night’s RTE Aftershock programming was devoted to political reform, with both commentators calling for a new constitution to replace Bunreacht na hÉireann. In essence Dan O’Brien of the Economist Intelligence Unit argued that PR-STV ought to be replaced by a list system (he did not specify whether that should be open…
First-past-the-post’s big advantage, its proponents say, is that it is supposed to deliver clear government, but as we can see in this election it does not always do that. Britain now has what the British in doom-laden fashion call a hung parliament. They seem genuinely shocked that they may have to negotiate ‘behind closed doors’…
The recent election must have been a major disappointment to the Liberal Democrats but that doesn’t matter because they have the ‘whip-hand’ in government formation. The party has ‘walk-away value’. If they don’t like a deal with the Conservatives they have other options (Labour & LibDems, with SDLP and Alliance brings you to 320). The…
The British first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP; often referred to as single member plurality) is long past its sell by date. The most recent wave of democratic consolidation across East and Central Europe, Central and Southern America, and parts of Africa have witnessed an explosion of interest in electoral system design. And some established democracies –…
By David Stanton TD It is clear to everyone that our parliamentary system needs reform. Dáil Éireann in its current state is not fit for purpose. Fine Gael recently published a policy document “New Politics” which sets out wide-ranging proposals for Dáil reform including the abolition of the Seanad. We have not addressed the electoral…
Here is an article from the Irish Times today outlining what we have all long suspected that senior Irish cabinet ministers indulge in a peculiarly Irish form of pork barrel, directing funds at their home constituencies. Voters are assumed to vote for candidates who have a good chance of becoming a minister in order to…
By Michael Gallagher Leaving aside the broader issue of electoral reform (I’ve put some thoughts on this here), the question of how to fill casual vacancies has been discussed. At present, by-elections are used to fill such vacancies, and this has been criticised as an anomalous way of filling vacancies arising under a PR system.…
Irish Politics Forum 