Thursday 18 March 2010

FPtP provides little choice to voters

Proportional Representation would remove the ability of politicians to be deaf to the complaints of their critics.

With FPtP there is no loss in one of the ruling parties, provided they are not worried about being beaten by their main rivals, being completely ambivalent about the reasons people will not support them. With PR a party will seek to gain every vote since there may be similar parties occupying a similar range of policies which can attract the votes, and hence power.

With PR political parties are concerned to hear and discuss with their critics because otherwise they will not prosper as a party. Being deaf is not a good tactic in a PR system. With FPtP what reason is there to listen? A FPtP party has no incentive to listen to criticism of policies which are shared by their putative rival, they are concerned, always, with what their opposition rival will say, not what is best. It leads to an obsession with the rival party and they end up talking to each other.

The FPtP parties don't care what you say because there is little choice to vote for anyone else.

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