First Past the Post is at the heart of our broken politics

It has long been argued as a matter of fairness, but in our age of turbulence, the voting system is now part of a wider debate about whether our institutions can support the trust, stability and long-term direction needed to deliver.

First Past the Post (FPTP) was long defended as a bastion of political stability, providing a platform for strong government. No casual or expert observer of our politics over the last few years would recognise those claims.

We’ve had four Prime Ministers in five years, and may well see that tally grow. We’ve become used to governments defined by instability despite huge Commons majorities. A big majority can hide a weak mandate. That is the contradiction FPTP now produces: overwhelming power in Parliament on a thin base of public consent. A government may have the votes to push through change, but not the depth of support needed to make hard choices stick.

Under multi-party politics, First Past the Post no longer translates public opinion into a solid platform for government. In February, more than 50 academics warned the government of the risks of chaos under First Past the Post. By May’s local elections, that warning already looked well-founded.

In Milton Keynes, the Liberal Democrats took the most seats on the council despite coming fourth in vote share. This was just one of many results across the country that pulled back the curtain on our new political reality. A handful of votes changing hands can cause wild swings in results, leading to what The Economist coined as “slot-machine politics” - a total disconnect between public opinion and electoral results. How can any party build a durable mandate when power and public support are becoming so visibly disconnected?

Solving Britain’s biggest challenges cannot be achieved on ever-shortening time horizons. Social care, housing, tax, infrastructure, public utilities and addressing regional decline can’t be addressed on weakening political foundations. First Past the Post is holding us back. It bakes in a winner-takes-all mentality, where reaching for common ground looks like weakness. It encourages parties to duck the big questions, waiting for total power rather than sharing responsibility for hard choices now. The public gets served up a menu of U-turns by one government, reversals by the next. It will take cooperation to break through the malaise.

Andy Burnham has long made this connection, calling for electoral reform to promote less point-scoring and more problem-solving in our politics. His rumoured rival for high office, Wes Streeting, voted for Proportional Representation back in 2015 and, at least according to recent reports, remains a supporter.

They are flanked by a party that has seen a sea change in opinion on First Past the Post. In 2022, the membership voted for Proportional Representation, unions representing three-quarters of Labour affiliates now back PR, and leading Parliamentary voices have called for action. And after 2024’s most disproportionate election result in British history, a majority of the public now supports moving away from First Past the Post too.

The Commons is also alive to this debate. Sarah Olney’s 10 Minute Rule Bill for Proportional Representation secured a historic symbolic victory in 2024. Alex Sobel MP’s amendment to the Representation of the People Bill, calling for a National Commission on Electoral Reform, has gathered 134 signatures and is rising, including 78 Labour backbenchers and backing from MPs from six other parties supportive of moving beyond FPTP.

A voting system should be a quiet part of our political infrastructure, but at the moment, its impact is deafening. First Past the Post is underpinning Britain’s political malaise, weakening trust in electoral results and making long-term delivery harder to sustain. Labour is right to start asking what comes next. A National Commission would help to build consensus around a voting system that delivers for the British public.

____________________

Alberto Smith is the Director of Policy and Public Affairs for Make Votes Matter.

LBC Opinion provides a platform for diverse opinions on current affairs and matters of public interest.

The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official LBC position.

To contact us email opinion@lbc.co.uk