Leaflet for Kingsmoor Ward

I am about to deliver this leaflet to residents in Kingsmoor Ward.

Why am I doing that when I'm not fighting an election?   Well, it gets the message about being unopposed out to the residents of Kingsmoor Ward and reminds them how to get in touch with me, but it also contains a few messages about AV and my reasons for supporting the "No" campaign. There is a danger that without a District and Town Council election residents will not turn out on May 5th - I want to encourage them to come out and vote "No".

In Defence of the Coalition

It would not surprise anyone to know that I am not a fan of the Lib Dems, and especially of their passion for taking political advantage out of any situation.  However, I am also understanding of the reasons for a coalition Government given the outcome of last year's General Election.

One aspect of a coalition that I don't think is understood is the inevitably of tensions and differences, such as we are seeing at the moment over AV.  Mature coalition Government and mature media has to recognise this and accept that those tensions are sometimes going to break out in the open.  Just because it does, should not continuously lead to commentary about the end of the coalition, it should, instead, be interpreted and accepted as an inevitable part of it how it operates.

I am absolutely clear about the need for a No vote in the referendum.  As are almost all of my Conservative colleagues.  The one thing that does bother me is that the Lib Dems will use the outcome of the referendum as an excuse to get rid of Nick Clegg and to end the coalition.  It will be a mistake in my opinion.  Much as I disagree with electoral reform, Nick Clegg has taken the Lib Dems closer to changing the electoral system than any previous Lib Dem leader.  To get so close and fail may not be perfect, but it will be better than any of his predecessors managed.  That would not have happened without him or the coalition.

Lib Dems also need to understand the implications of such a decision.  If it forced a general election, the end result could be to put the deficit denying Labour Party in power again.  That would be a disaster for our Country, not least because it would come about because of a collapse in the Lib Dem vote; people don't vote for divided parties (yes, I know they are currently polling at a disastrous 10% - but leaving will potentially make that even worse).

I suspect that latter issue is what will make the difference - Lib Dems will always do what is best for them electorally, rather than what is best for the Country.

No to the Alternative Vote

Today sees the launch of the website for the No to AV campaign.

If introduced, the alternative vote would see a fundamental change to how we elect our MPs.  Alongside the local elections in May there will be a referendum where you will be asked if you prefer this system.

As this is not strictly a party political issue I have done a great deal of navel gazing to confirm my gut instinct that our voting system does not need AV, and I remain convinced.

The main reason is that of simplicity.  It is easy to go into a voting booth and put a cross against a single name.  AV would change this completely, requiring you to rank candidates in your order of preference - it adds a complication that is just not needed. Our ludicrous voting system for European elections is a perfect example of this - and I had a number complaints about it during the last European elections.

One other important issue here is that AV is more likely to result in coalition Governments.  The Lib Dems have encouraged changes to our voting system for years as a quest for power.  I am afraid my personal view of how certain Lib Dems at a local and National level have behaved since they have become part of the Government has proven that politics in this country is not ready for a system where coalition Government becomes a more common occurence.

I suspect there will be loads of people out there using the argument that politics is broken and therefore we need change.  That argument assumes that all change is good; it is not.  There are changes I would love to see at a National level that would make our MPs more accountable, such as to reduce the power of Party whips to give MPs more of a conscience and for leaders of all parties to have a greater reliance on their own elected representatives as advisers (David Cameron seems to be headed in that direction with this initiative).  AV will do nothing to enable either of these; it would be change for changes sake rather than change for the better.

My advice to anyone is to make sure they understand the issues read up carefully, change to our democracy and a system that has served us so well over the years should not be taken lightly.