North Yorkshire electoral change campaigners accused of wasting council’s time

Electoral change campaigners have been accused of wasting North Yorkshire County Council’s time after calling for ruling Conservative councillors to press colleagues in Westminster to introduce proportional representation.

A meeting of the council’s executive saw residents and councillors give impassioned responses to a proposal by the Liberal Democrat councillor for High Harrogate and Kingsley, Chris Aldred, for it to endorse proportional representation at all elections.

The meeting heard at the 2019 general election, across the eight constituencies in North Yorkshire and York, the Conservatives received 54% of the votes cast, but ended up with seven out of the eight seats.

Campaigners told the meeting how analysis of the county council’s elections since 2005 had revealed that on average UKIP needed 15,500 votes per councillor, the Green Party 6,900, Labour 4,500, Liberal Democrats 3,500 and the Conservatives just 1,900.

The meeting heard claims that many residents believed their votes did not count, resulting in only 35% of those registered to vote taking part in last May’s council elections.

Campaigners called for North Yorkshire to lead the way for “a fairer future” and highlighted the region’s role in historic moments such as the women’s suffrage movement and action to abolish slavery.

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The meeting was told the council’s Conservative administration had been formed despite the party’s candidates only receiving 41.3% of the votes, meaning nearly three in five of those who voted were not represented on the authority’s all-Tory decision-making executive.

After listening to numerous campaigners for 26 minutes, and opposition councillors state the reasoning behind the motions for a further 10 minutes, the authority’s deputy leader, Cllr Gareth Dadd, said the public would be “horrified” to learn the cost of officers’ and councillors’ time in considering the proposals.

He said: 

“This is, let’s be clear about it, political posturing, by opposition members, grandstanding for no purpose in terms of outcome for this authority.

“We should be getting on with things that we have some control over.

“This should not be used again as a platform for self-indulgent and party political promotion.”

Cllr David Chance, executive member for corporate services, said there were pros and cons to any electoral system and while proportional representation could lead to more voices being heard, the electoral system could see more unstable coalition governments.

He added: 

“The first-past-the-post system of voting has the advantage of providing a clear winner in every seat contested. 

“It builds a strong relationship with the locally elected officials and is a well known system of voting that is easy to understand.”

Ahead of the executive agreeing that it would not support the proposal, which will be considered by the full council in May, Cllr Chance said electoral reform was an issue that Westminster politicians would decide, but that it was not on the government’s agenda.

Campaigners call for North Yorkshire Council to embrace proportional representation

Campaigners are calling on North Yorkshire Council to become the first local authority in England to reject the first-past-the-post electoral system.

Cllr Chris Aldred, a Liberal Democrat representing High Harrogate, has proposed a notice of motion calling on the council to press the UK government to enable proportional representation to be used for general, local and mayoral elections.

Executive members of the unitary council’s forerunner, North Yorkshire County Council, will consider Cllr Aldred’s proposal next month.

The move comes two months after Richmondshire District Council resolved to lobby the government to “end minority rule” after members highlighted how proportional representation systems were already being used to elect the parliaments and assemblies of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

North Yorkshire-based campaign groups, including Compass, say while the first-past-the-post system originated when land-owning aristocrats dominated parliament and voting was restricted to property-owning men, proportional representation would ensure all votes count, have equal value, and those seats won match votes cast.

They say with MPs and councillors better reflecting their communities, there would be improved decision-making, wider participation and increased levels of ownership of decisions taken.

Electoral campaigners say given the volume of votes which have effectively been ignored at County Hall, the “relatively weak electoral accountability” of the authority has an impact on public procurement, as, without sufficient critical oversight, costs can spiral out of control.

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Campaigners highlight that at the last general election just 41% of the votes in North Yorkshire constituencies were for Conservative candidates but under the first-past-the-post system the Tories secured all seven seats.

Campaigner Georgie Sale said while numerous councils were considering the issue, North Yorkshire’s council should show leadership and embrace a fair and modern voting system.

She said: 

“People are looking for their politicians to do things that are honest, right and fair and we have got a new unitary council and the opportunity to do something different.

“The bigger the variety of people you have got thinking about a problem, the better the solution you come to. People from different perspectives can bring a fresh set of eyes and new ideas to the table, so it has got to be for the good of us all.

“You could have knocked me down with a feather when it was approved by Richmondshire council and I am optimistic we might get this through at North Yorkshire, but even if we don’t this time, I feel that door is now ready to be pushed.”

Campaigners in Harrogate call for change to ‘unequal’ voting system

Campaigners in Harrogate called for a change to the “unequal” UK voting system yesterday.

Members of the cross-party pressure group Make Votes Matter were at the town’s war memorial handing out leaflets about proportional representation (PR) and speaking to passers-by.

In the 2019 general election, 54% of votes in North Yorkshire went to the Conservative Party yet they hold 7 out of the 8 seats in Parliament. Members of the group believe the political make-up of Westminster and local councils should better reflect the way people vote.

Elections for councillors and MPs in this country currently adopt the first-past-the-post system whereby the candidate in each constituency or ward who gets the most votes wins.

Harrogate resident Graham Dixon would like to see the current system replaced with a version of PR so that “every vote matters”.

Scotland, Wales and London, for example, use a version of PR called mixed-member proportional representation whereby people get two votes: one to choose a representative and another for a party.

Many European countries such as the Netherlands and Spain, operate the party list proportional representation, whereby voters elect a group of MPs, rather than a single person.

Mr Dixon said:

“First-past-the-post polarises society and sets people against each other. It encourage a two-party state.

“Very few seats change hands in the UK, they are cast in stone.”

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The Harrogate and Knaresborough constituency has been held by the Conservative Andrew Jones since 2010. Critics of the current system locally believe it makes a two-horse race between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats a near-certainty, with Labour and Green voters often forced to vote tactically.

Former Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for Skipton and Ripon Andrew Murday wants to see first-past-the-post in the bin.

Mr Dixon believes a PR system would mean the electorate wouldn’t have to choose the “least worst option”.

“PR does away with the need for tactical voting and encourages people to vote. Some people don’t bother to vote in Harrogate.

“From the housing mess in Harrogate to cycle lanes, it’s all affected by how people have voted.”

Harrogate Borough Council is set to be abolished to make way for a North Yorkshire mega council in 2023.

Mr Dixon said re-organisation presented an opportunity to bring in PR and enable all voters to have a stronger voice in what is a traditional Conservative heartland.

However, he accepts that the chances of it happening under the current government are unlikely.